Austin Reaves Says That He Wants To Be An NBA All-Star, But On One Condition

Once again, Austin Reaves will be playing alongside two bona fide All-Stars on the Los Angeles Lakers' lineup. And it certainly appears that it’s only a matter of time before the prolific guard is named an All-Star himself.

Reaves certainly believes that, but at the same time, he doesn’t appear to be desperate to win this distinction. In an interview with Dan Woike of The Athletic, Reaves actually described a scenario in which he doesn’t want to be named an All-Star.

“I feel like I could be an All-Star. But all of that is, in my opinion, relative. Thank God I play with Luka and LeBron,” Reaves told Woike. “I don’t want to be in a situation where I’m just going out chucking, getting numbers. If that’s the map for me to be an All-Star, I don’t care about that.”

There are three things to unpack in Reaves’ statement.

First, there’s his supreme confidence in his ability to thrive. This confidence is validated by the numbers that the 6-foot-5 guard has put up in his four-year career. Since joining the Lakers as an undrafted player in 2021, Reaves has steadily increased his averages in points, rebounds, and assists.  

In connection with this, he also acknowledged the massive role that LeBron James and Luka Dončić play in facilitating the Lakers’ offense. Clearly, Reaves recognizes that James and Dončić make everyone’s life easier, allowing the other Lakers to comfortably play their roles. In other words, Reaves knows that his 20.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg, and 5.8 apg last season can be partly attributed to playing with the likes of James, Dončić, and Anthony Davis.

Lastly, Reaves’ refusal to be the best player on a bad team speaks volumes about his maturity. Whereas other young players like him sometimes pursue impressive stat lines regardless of their teams’ win-loss record, Reaves has made it clear that he “doesn’t care” about that kind of monster numbers.

What, then, does Reaves care about? It’s safe to deduce that winning a championship with the Lakers is his top priority. If he maintains the upward trend in key statistics and continues to step up as a lethal third option next to two future Hall of Famers, Reaves could find himself making a push for accolades that transcend All-Star Game appearances.