“He likes the poor man’s Luka Doncic”

Former NBA champion Jeff Teague did it boldly compared LA Lakers’ $12.9 million point guard Austin Reaves to Luka Doncic. Reaves obviously has the influence that Doncic has on the floor. He’s also not an MVP player or a true All-Star. Their backgrounds and career paths differ significantly.

However, Teague sees some similarities in terms of how they play. On the latest episode of his show, the Club 520 Podcast, the former Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics guard said:

“He (Reaves) likes poor man Luka Doncic. …Yes, he is a poor man, Luka.”

After his co-host disagreed, Teague said:

“If you really watch him play, the way they play is very similar. He’s just not that big and strong. And why I say ‘poor man’ is because he doesn’t score as easily (like Doncic). But the way he makes people move and move, and the way he uses his body and creates space, and he also makes really good passes and takes hard shots, he likes poor man Luka.” ( 40:04)

The 1.90 meter tall Austin Reaves is much smaller than the 1.80 meter tall Luka Doncic. However, he has a feel for his game on offense, particularly in the pick and roll, that is similar to Doncic’s movement in tight spaces. Reaves doesn’t score with a high shot, but when given the opportunity, he has the skill to produce good results.

Reaves is coming off back-to-back games with 26 points. In the Lakers’ win against the Kings on Saturday, in the absence of LeBron James, he even delivered the best performance of his career with 16 assists.

Austin Reaves is taking on more of the load at point guard after the Lakers traded D’Angelo Russell

Austin Reaves has gradually developed and grown each year. Now in his fourth NBA season, he is the undisputed No. 3 in the Lakers’ hierarchy of best players behind LeBron James and Anthony Davis. He is averaging 17.7 points and 5.5 assists per game, his career highs, and is shooting 44.4/36.3/79.4 splits.

Reaves’ usage has also increased to 23.0% under new coach JJ Redick, an increase of 2.3% compared to last year. That could rise even further in the next few weeks and possibly for the rest of the season. On Sunday, the Lakers traded their only traditional point guard, D’Angelo Russell, for Dorian Finney-Smith.

The team is currently slightly shorthanded at one point, and Reaves seems destined to reach the full-time point guard role he has held for most of the season. After eight games, Redick demoted Russell to the bench, with the Lakers falling to 4-4 after a 3-0 start.