Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal has known as upon Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura to offer the assist LeBron and Anthony Davis so desperately want.
“The pressure is on LeBron and A.D., but as a professional player, with guys leaving you wide open, you have to step up,” O’Neal said on The Stephen A. Smith show. “Rick Fox and Derek Fisher used to be pissed off if they missed open shots. They knew they had to knock those down. So, again, the others have to step up. Listen, you got A.D. playin’ fabulous — I’m on A.D.’s case all the time. LeBron playin’. But Reaves gotta play spectacular. D’Angelo gotta play spectacular. Rui Hachimura gotta play spectacular. And they have to take advantage of the — you playing with two of the greatest players ever. You have room to operate. So, if you got room to operate, be aggressive and operate. You can’t always wait on them, and sometimes, you gotta do it yourself, but the others have to step up. … You need others to win championships.”
The Lakers are within the midst of a four-game dropping streak and Reaves has been making an attempt his best possible to assist the crew’s superstars.
Since Darvin Ham has elevated his minutes, Reaves has scored 20+ factors within the Lakers’ final three video games.
He can also be averaging profession highs of 15.4 factors, 4.5 rebounds and 5.2 assists per sport throughout 36 contests.
The stress to finish the purple and gold’s dropping streak is mounting, although Reaves says that isn’t what he is considering throughout video games.
“To be completely honest, it would be almost impossible for my mind to go there during a game,” Reaves mentioned after LA’s 127-113 loss to Memphis. “I can’t speak for everybody else, obviously. But when you’re playing a game, think about the game. I’m not thinking about record, what you’re doing, how you’re playing. Think about winning the game. And that’s all I think about is how can I affect the game in a winning way.”
As for Hachimura, a calf harm suffered on New Years Eve has saved him out for 3 straight video games, however he might return to the lineup on Tuesday towards the Raptors as he’s day-to-day.
READ MORE: NBA Insider Details ‘Deepening Disconnect’ in Lakers’ Locker Room
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