Austin Reaves deserves so much credit for putting in the hard work that took him from undrafted to a soon-to-be max player. However, no one does things by themselves. We all get a little bit of help in life. For the Los Angeles Lakers star, two prominent figures who helped get him to where he is today were Rajon Rondo and LeBron James.
Reaves was on the cover for a recent edition of SLAM online. The Lakers guard was asked if there was a specific veteran who took him under his wing and helped AR15 get acclimated to the NBA. That is where the Lakers star did not hesitate to bring up Rondo and James.
Reaves said, "Rondo was probably the first one. ... Everybody knows his IQ for the game. He studies the game unlike anybody else. ... We would have a game one night, and the next morning Rondo would ask me, Hey, what happened at 5:45 in the first quarter? And if I didn’t know, it wasn’t good."
AR then added that LeBron was 'someone else that was super helpful' in each of his years in the NBA, but especially that first one. Reaves said that any type of help that James could offer, he was willing to.
Reaves' breakout is proof of what vets like LeBron and Rondo can do for rising stars
There can be instances when fans question why their franchise employs a certain veteran player to be on the end of their bench. Hearing stories like the ones offered by Reaves really remind everyone why veteran leadership matters.
Granted, James was not exactly the 14th or 15th man on the end of the bench. LeBron has been a productive star to superstar level of player for each of the years Reaves has spent with the Lakers.
That specific version of Rondo, on the other hand, was closer to your traditional NBA vet on the bench. Remember, Reaves went undrafted in 2021. This isn't the version of Rajon that was a key role player in the championship run. This was the one who return to Los Angeles for his final year in the NBA. Rondo only appeared in 18 games for the Lakers that season.
Clearly, though, his value and presence was felt even if that did not come directly on the court for the team through his own individual play. Having good veterans matters.
It's fair to assume Reaves' work ethic still gets him to a prominent spot in the NBA without James and Rondo. Even so, who truly knows the player he would be today without that little bit of extra support?