Austin Reaves has been turning heads in the NBA recently, with a lot of fans taking notice.
When teams lose players like LeBron James and Luka Doncic, it often leads to a drop in confidence. But that has not been the case for the Los Angeles Lakers.
In fact, they are still playing with plenty of belief, and much of that is down to Austin Reaves. Without James and Doncic available, he has stepped up as the team’s main option.
However, before he became known as AR15 in LA, Indiana actually had an early chance to pick him up. His journey could have gone in a very different direction had things played out differently.
Austin Reaves’ overlooked 2021 Pacers workout comes back to haunt them
In 2021, Rick Carlisle returned as head coach of the Indiana Pacers and was expected to help lead the team into a new era.
Most expected Carlisle to take his time building something, but he was clear about wanting to speed things up. One way to do that was by making the right call with the 13th pick in the draft.
In that context, the Pacers chose Chris Duarte, who put together a solid rookie campaign. But they passed on Reaves, who has since made headlines.
Indiana even had him in for a workout before deciding not to pick him. Reaves did not hear his name called at all during the 2021 NBA Draft – a decision that looks even worse in hindsight.
Austin Reaves on what he hoped to bring to Indiana
Back when he worked out for Indiana before the draft, Reaves talked about what he could offer if the team picked him up.
“I’m a good teammate and I can bond with people that I don’t even know; honestly, I don’t really know anybody in this process.
“I’m a good teammate that can lead guys, and other than that, just show that I’m diverse, show that I can play multiple positions on the floor and really just compete every chance that I get,” he stated.
There is no doubt he has lived up to those words. With LeBron James and Luka Doncic both out, Reaves has stepped into a leadership role for the Lakers without missing a beat.
This season, he is putting up 34.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 10.0 assists per game while shooting 52.5% from the field and 38.5% from beyond the arc.
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That is impressive production for anyone, let alone someone who went undrafted.
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