Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves hit a crucial three-point shot late in last night's game that sealed the deal for the team as they beat the Phoenix Suns in the NBA In-Season Tournament quarterfinals, 106-103. After the game, Reaves was talked about highly from LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the top two players on the Lakers.
AUSTIN REAVES OH MY GOODNESS
CLUTCH. pic.twitter.com/Q2ItI7NiXH
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 6, 2023
When they were asked about trusting Reaves in late-game situations and him hitting the huge shot towards the end, James would say “he's done it.” Davis started his response with “it's Austin” before delving in deeper into his answer and about the viral play according to ClutchPoints' Michael Corvo.
“He's done it, he's made countless big shots for us, big plays for us, we trust the ball in his hands,” Davis said. “We were talking about it in the locker room, I had the ball and I caught it to swing it to Bron [James] to go into our pick and roll and he pointed right to Austin [Reaves] and that's when he hit the three. We just have a lot of confidence in him and what he brings to the team and his ability to score at will. Whether it's late-game, mid-game, or early-game, we feel we can go to him anytime and he'll make the right play.”
“It’s Austin.”
“He’s done it.”Anthony Davis and LeBron James on trusting Austin Reaves in the clutch.
(via @michaelcorvoNBA) pic.twitter.com/ZNnjlJX2XP
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 6, 2023
Reaves credits his work ethic
Reaves would finish the game with 20 points and six rebounds to go along with James who had 31 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists. Davis would also contribute to the overall cohesive Lakers win as he scored 27 and collected 15 rebounds. As he has said before, Reaves mentioned to the media after the game that he acknowledges he's had an up-and-down season, but he puts the work in.
“Like I've said many times, I put the work in. I'm in the gym a lot. I haven't shot the ball as well as I wanted to so far this year. And I just keep trusting myself,” Reaves said to Mike Trudell of Spectrum SportsNet. “Obviously my teammates and coaches have the same trust in giving me the ball in that situation so I don't want to let them down.”
Players on Suns reflect on Lakers win and timeout
Suns opponent Kevin Durant gave credit to Los Angeles as he picks them to win the first ever NBA In-Season Tournament since they beat Pheonix. He cites their size and players as a big reason why.




“I’m going to go with the Lakers since they beat us,” Durant said. “They’ve got the size to compete with anybody. They’ve got the quickest flight [to Las Vegas] out of anybody [and] the most fans out of anybody. It’s set up for them to win.”
While the Lakers win was impressive, it wasn't without controversy. Suns star Devin Booker spoke out after the game as he believes the officiating wasn't on point when they granted the Lakers a timeout late in the game when the ball wasn't in their possession.
“[The loss hurts worse] when they put so much anticipation on the [tournament] game,” Booker said. “We’re not asking for favoritism, just a fair chance. Even before the game, in the pregame huddles as a team, we’d come in and say, ‘We understand what type of game it’s going to be, just keep playing all the way through it.’ We continued to play an uphill battle the whole time, and to watch it unfold like that is tough.”
The Lakers’ 106-103 victory Tuesday over the Suns to advance to the NBA In-Season Tournament semifinals featured a controversial call in the closing seconds.
L.A. was granted a timeout during what seemed to be a loose ball.
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— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) December 6, 2023
Former Lakers head coach speaks out about controversy
Current Suns and former Lakers head coach Frank Vogel spoke as well about it and called the decision to call the timeout “extremely disappointing.” He stresses that the ball was loose and a timeout should not have been called by the referees according to The Washington Post.
“It’s a loose ball,” Vogel said. “The ball is out. You can’t call a timeout on a loose ball. Can’t do it. … The trap was the plan, which worked. We got the trap, we got the turnover, and the damn whistle blows. It’s just frustrating. [The referees] said they can’t review it and that nothing about it was reviewable. You see it all the time: An inadvertent whistle, [and you] take it out on the side. Grayson Allen is going to grab [the ball] and lay it in. … We were ready to tie the game up, and that opportunity was taken away from us.”
At the end of the day, the Lakers have moved onto the inaugural tourney's semi-finals where they'll face the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday. On the other side, the Indiana Pacers will face the Milwaukee Bucks to either face the Lakers or the Pelicans. Los Angeles currently carries a 13-9 record which puts them at fourth in the Western Conference.