Austin Reaves and LeBron James said their goodbyes in the Los Angeles Lakers’ locker room last May, knowing that James’s future with the club was uncertain. The moment came after the Lakers had just finished a 127-105 win over the Golden State Warriors in their opening night game, and it was the last time the two shared a locker room as teammates.
“I wasn’t a LeBron fan growing up. I was a Kobe [Bryant] guy,” Reaves said, when asked what he remembered about the hug they shared that night. “But then getting to know him as a human was one of the coolest things I’ve been able to experience.”
A sacrifice of his own
Reaves went into the offseason hoping they would both be back with the Lakers this season. He also understood the financial and roster-building reasons that would eventually lead James to leave Los Angeles and start afresh in Philadelphia. Reaves signed a four-year, $180 million deal to return to the Lakers, while James signed a two-year, $8 million contract with the Sixers.
James, who recorded 14 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists in Philadelphia’s opening night win in New York on Tuesday, had embraced a co-starring role alongside Reaves and Luka Doncic. However, that was a sacrifice rather than a choice he had made for himself. Free agency gave James a choice for the first time in eight years, and he chose to play elsewhere.
Reaves respects that decision. He and James still text each other often, and James recently sent him a pair of shoes. That does not mean Reaves has stopped missing his former teammate, nor does it mean the Lakers have filled the sizeable gap James left behind.
Missing a friend and a mentor
“I never disregarded the basketball player he was when I was younger. I knew he was great, but then to full-circle being on the team with him, and then him giving me confidence every single day was incredible,” Reaves said. “It gave me a better outlook on judging people because he treated me the same from the day he met me when I was a two-way player, to when I call him right now. I think that’s what I miss the most.”
Reaves is now the longest-tenured Laker, having been with the club for the last six seasons. Bronny James is next, entering his third season with the team, followed by Doncic, who has been in Los Angeles for 18 months. Jake LaRavia is fourth, in just his second season with the club.
A familiar opening night rival
Golden State coach Steve Kerr admitted that seeing James in a Sixers jersey felt strange. “It’s weird not seeing him tonight and seeing him in a Sixers jersey last night,” Kerr said before the game.
It was a familiar opening night fixture, the fourth time in six years the NBA had paired the two teams on opening night. For Kerr and the Warriors, the rivalry with James runs deeper, dating back to the four straight years Golden State met James’s Cavaliers teams in the Finals.
“Those Finals will live in the history of both franchises forever,” Kerr said. “That was an iconic era for both teams. This is a new Lakers team, and a new Warriors team.”
Doncic steps into the spotlight
On this night, Doncic set out to take the leading role with a series of grand gestures on and off the court. He took out a full-page advert in the Los Angeles Times addressed directly to the fans, offered free parking in a nearby lot and provided free bike rides to the game.
“I know they work hard to get to the games, to get to the arena,” Doncic said afterwards. “So I’ve always had something in me that I need to have that connection with the fans. So just trying to welcome them to the new season so that they know that we really appreciate the support.”
Before tip-off, he grabbed a microphone and addressed the home crowd. “Hello, Laker Nation,” Doncic said. “Thank you for supporting us. It’s the start of something new. It’s going to be a special season, so thank you for your support.”
Reaves could hardly believe what he was hearing. “I heard his voice and I was like, ‘What the hell’s going on?'” Reaves said. “There’s no way this is actually him.”
Doncic is a showman on the court but generally soft-spoken and brief with his public comments. “It just shows that he’s bought in, he’s all-in,” Reaves said. “Even in Slovenia [where Doncic hosted the team] he paid for everything. When his heart’s somewhere … He’s going to take care of the community that he’s in, he’s going to take care of the people that’s around him.”
Doncic also looked after his teammates on the court, scoring 28 points and dishing out seven assists. He somehow placed new centre Walker Kessler in the same statistical breath as Shaquille O’Neal and Wilt Chamberlain. Kessler made 12 field goals without a miss, the most by a Lakers player since Chamberlain in 1969, and recorded 10 dunks, the most in a game since O’Neal had 11 dunks, twice in the 2003 season.
Doncic’s best moment came in the first half, when he hit a half-court shot to beat the buzzer. It was the kind of play that led James to dub him “Luka Magic” and brought the sellout crowd to its feet. “I knew that was going up before I got it in my hands,” Doncic said, smiling. “I work on those.”
His style differs greatly from James’s, but the responsibility they carry remains the same. “The Lakers [are] one of the biggest organizations in the world, if not the biggest,” Doncic said. “It’s an honour to be the face of the franchise and I hope I can stay here a long time.”