When you fall down 0-2 in a playoff series like the Los Angeles Lakers did on Thursday night with their 125-107 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, it's hard as a fan and coach to find a silver lining. However, for both Lakers fans and JJ Redick, this game blessed them with a very positive takeaway as Austin Reaves finally looked like the AR of old.
In the loss, Reaves posted 31 points, pulled in two rebounds, dished out six assists, and shot 62.5 percent from the field and connected on 50 percent of his triples.
For the majority of LA's regular season, Reaves had the benefit, like everyone else on the Lakers, of playing off Luka Doncic. This allowed him to thrive offensively, hence why he averaged 23.3 points per game during the regular season. With no Luka, things have been a struggle. From the point of attack, LA has been limited to having either Reaves or LeBron James initiating the offense.
When you're playing against a team like the Thunder, this is very problematic. They are loaded with high-level perimeter defenders and gritty stoppers. Their defensive aggressiveness and energy gave Reaves problems in Game 1. He shot just 3-of-16 from the field and scored only eight points.
In Game 2, he was able to flip the script and find a rhythm offensively. If this carries over into the rest of the series, it could help LA fight back from down 0-2.
Austin Reaves' resurgence could be the key to Lakers comeback
From my perspective, did Reaves look fully healthy? No. Did he still struggle to move his feet and stay with his man defensively? Yes. But was he putting the ball in the hoop? Heck yeah!
Whether it was attacking downhill, finding gaps in the defense to take a little floater, or being a threat from deep, Reaves was a consistent problem for this elite OKC defense. It didn't matter if it was a big switched onto him on the perimeter, or one of Cason Wallace or Alex Caruso trying to be physical, Reaves was frying them.
The aggressiveness and confidence he played with on the offensive end are what made this season so special for Reaves. His rediscovery of that is massive for the Lakers.
With the series now going back to LA and the likelihood of a Luka return appearing to be increasingly less optimistic, Reaves' play matters more than ever. If he can keep up this type of production for the next two games at home, fans should feel confident about the purple and gold heading back to OKC tied up at two apiece.
But if the Game 1 version of AR reappears, things could get very ugly. If that is the case, LA could be sent packing in a four-game sweep.
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