Following the first two games of the Los Angeles Lakers-Houston Rockets series, JJ Redick may've had a difficult question rattling around in his brain: Do I start Austin Reaves once he comes back, or do I stick with Luke Kennard, who's been on fire?
Kennard was averaging 25 points per game in the series on 8-of-11 from 3, but he's since cooled off, making Redick's decision much easier. With it looking like Reaves will play in Game 5, Redick should start AR over Kennard and let Reaves and his elite playmaking/scoring tools help rescue a Lakers offense that had a rough Game 4.
Luke Kennard's fall back to Earth made Austin Reaves the clear starter
Kennard was out of his mind in Games 1 and 2 and looking like an All-Star, but he didn't have as much success in the two games that followed: He was 1-for-9 from 3 and 7-for-20 from the field overall in Games 3 and 4. Not terrible, by any means, but also not good enough to convince Redick that keeping Reaves out of the starting lineup in favor of Kennard is still a move worthy of consideration.
Kennard should benefit from Reaves' return, by the way, even with it removing Luke's starter status. With AR giving the Lakers another offensive weapon that attracts a ton of gravity, Kennard will get more open looks. Plus, Luke will be playing more minutes against Houston's bench players than he has so far in this series.
JJ Redick should approach Game 5 like a must-win
For Redick, starting Reaves -- despite rust concerns -- falls in line with the idea that the Lakers should really be approaching Game 5 like a must-win. In those types of games, you put your best players front and center and let the chips fall where they may. You're absolutely going down swinging with your best guys playing heavy minutes.
On that last point, it remains to be seen if Reaves will be unleashed without a minutes restriction, but that doesn't change the point that the Lakers can't afford to lose Game 5 and be in a 3-2 series headed back to Houston. The confidence of the Rockets would be soaring if that happened, and their momentum would be far greater than LA's. It's a situation that would likely spiral toward a Game 7, where absolutely anything can go down.
You obviously don't want to injure Reaves further by overworking him in Game 5, but on the other hand, Redick and the Lakers have every reason to treat this game like Game 7 of the NBA Finals. This means Redick will have to toe the line between a must-win mentality and risk-managing Reaves, a task that is much easier said than done. So, while one major Reaves decision has become easier for JJ to handle, there are still others to wrestle with.
Add us as a preferred source on Google