The Los Angeles Lakers are preparing to enter the 2024-25 season with a roster that may not look the same by the end of it. There have been flashes of brilliance from the current core, but trade rumors have persisted throughout the offseason that threaten to break the team up.
As head coach JJ Redick attempts to navigate the rumors, an outside-the-box idea may be what's needed to help the Lakers realize their full potential.
Los Angeles' best starting lineup in 2023-24 consisted of D'Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis. It's a lineup that helped the team reach the 2023 Western Conference Finals and began to produce a similar caliber of play down the stretch in 2024.
From February 1 to the end of the 2023-24 regular season, that starting five helped the Lakers ranked No. 3 in the NBA in offensive rating and secure a 23-10 record.
Unfortunately, there's a strong possibility that the Lakers will break up what could be a championship-caliber core. Russell has been mentioned in trade rumors throughout the 2024 offseason, with Los Angeles reportedly shopping him around the NBA.
In the event that Russell is traded, then the Lakers will need to adapt at point guard—and shifting Reaves to the position could be the unexpected solution in advantageous settings.
Austin Reaves at point guard could create a new version of death lineup
Reaves took a massive step forward in 2023-24, posting career-best averages of 15.9 points, 5.5 assists, 4.3 rebounds, 0.8 steals, and 1.9 three-point field goals made per game. Both on paper and on the court, it was the best season of his three-year Lakers tenure.
The 5.5 assists per game that Reaves tallied were perhaps the most significant of those figures, as they offered supporting evidence of a potentially ideal change to the starting lineup.
Reaves has proven willing and able to contribute to the offense as an isolation scorer and playmaker. He was second on the Lakers behind LeBron James in drives last season and has the skill set to attack a set defense and generate efficient offense off the bounce.
Whether Reaves is attacking the rim, creating space for jump shots, or finding the open man, he's willing and able to do so—thus making him the ideal point guard for a James-led offense.
James' presence has routinely enabled scoring guards to occupy the role of a secondary playmaker. Reaves could do exactly that in a potential death lineup, providing the Lakers with an opportunity to go big without losing too much on the defensive end of the floor.
In that scenario, Reaves would have a chance to exploit mismatches against smaller defenders while helping to pace the offense with his playmaking.
The key to the success of this lineup is that Reaves can function as a scorer or playmaker with the ball, as well as a quality option without it. In 2023-24, he shot 36.7 percent on catch-and-shoot threes and 37.3 percent on pull-ups from beyond the arc.
Furthermore, the Lakers were 20-9 when Reaves dished out at least seven assists last season—and 27-26 when he didn't. It was a clear sign of how much better the Lakers are when the ball is in his hands.
Moving Reaves to point guard may not be the answer to the question of who should start at the position if Russell is traded, but it's a tactical advantage that could help the Lakers navigate the regular season in 2042-25.