Austin Reaves was lost for words after praise from four-time MVP team-mate LeBron James following his career-best 35 points led the Los Angeles Lakers to a crucial win on Sunday.
Reaves top scored for the Lakers, including scoring their last 10 points, in the 111-105 win over the Orlando Magic, which moved them into a tie for ninth in the Western Conference with a 35-37 record.
The shooting guard made his telling contribution in 30 minutes off the bench. Reaves became the seventh player in franchise history to score 35 points or more off the bench.
The Lakers bench contributed 61 of their 111 points, but Reaves earned special praise from James.
James, who missed his 11th straight game due to a right-foot injury, wrote on social media "You toooooo TOUGH!!" about Reaves after his game-winning display.
"You're talking about arguably one of the greatest players ever," Reaves told reporters. "I mean I don't know what to say.
"For him to accept me the way he accepted me from day one, obviously I felt there was a really good chemistry, IQ-wise, from day one. But not just him, everybody else."
Anthony Davis, who contributed 15 points with 11 rebounds and four blocks, heaped further praise on Reaves.
"He carried us tonight with his play," Davis said. "We know what we have in Austin. He's very confident and he played that way tonight."
The Lakers' Crypto.com Arena crowd went so far as to chant M-V-P towards Reaves for his performance, which he revelled in.
"For them to recognise what I do – obviously not an MVP-calibre player, those guys are really good – but for them to do that for me is special, it means a lot to me," Reaves said.
"Every time I take the court, play with a sense of urgency and leave it all out on the floor, because that's how I feel basketball should be played."
Reaves is averaging 11.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game this season, but has managed double-digit scores in the Lakers' past eight games, averaging 15.9 points during March.
Pistons hire Monty Williams as coach
Monty Williams will be named the next coach of the Detroit Pistons and is expected to sign a six-year, $78.5 million contract, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Pistons will give Williams the largest coaching deal in NBA history to replace Dwane Casey, who stepped down as Detroit’s coach in April to move into a front-office role.
The Athletic reported that there are team options for the seventh and eighth year, and incentives that could increase the deal to $100 million.
Williams was fired by the Phoenix Suns on May 13 after four seasons with the team, including a trip to the 2021 NBA Finals. He won 63 percent of his games with the Suns and was named the NBA Coach of the Year in May 2022 after leading Phoenix to a franchise-record 64 wins.
The Suns, however, had huge losses in elimination games in the playoffs in consecutive seasons and that ultimately led to Williams’ firing.
Casey went 121-263 in five seasons with Detroit and the team made the playoffs only once under his guidance.
The Pistons finished an NBA-worst 17-65 in 2022-23 for their seventh straight losing season. They haven’t won a playoff round since 2007-08.
Local stars eager to play part in influencing change in schools, communities through National Basketball League
Having yearned for the return of the National Basketball League (NBL), a number of the country's top players are now raring to go, not merely to give off their best, but also to hopefully inspire youths in troubled communities to view the sport as a way out.
The ambitions of Adeeb Vernon, Leslie Cassell and Matthew-Dane Henry, coincide with Jamaica Basketball Association’s (JABA) objective, which is to use basketball as a way of influencing communities and schools to reduce incidence of violence, through partnership with the Ministry of National Security.
The upcoming season to target certain communities in Kingston, St James and Westmoreland for violence-intervention projects, marks the return of the nation’s top basketball league from a three-year COVID-induced break and will see 10 teams –down from 12 in 2020 –vying for supremacy over a four-month period, staring June 17.
Vernon, a member of defending champions St George’s Slayers, said the league’s objective hits close to home, as he revealed that basketball saved him from his disruptive ways.
"I think this game can help Jamaica in the sense that it can get kids on the right track, and I should know because I was one of those teenagers who gave a lot of trouble growing up and it wasn’t until I got involved in basketball that my behaviour and overall attitude changed,” Vernon said during the League’s launch at the Sports Development Foundation (SDF) Phoenix Avenue base on Wednesday.
The power forward, who is now gearing up to represent Jamaica at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games next month, is hoping to continue his rich vein of form from a previous tournament.
“I was one of the top power forwards in the Phase 1 Caribbean League and so I now hope to be one of the best players in the NBL. I am working towards that goal and so I am looking forward to giving my all and entertaining the spectators,” Vernon declared.
Urban Knights representative Cassell, pointed out that his recent return to basketball came with a higher calling.
"I am one of those players that have been away from the sport since COVID, but I found my wait back through a community league which my team won. But my bigger approach to that game was to be a role model for the younger players on the team,” he explained.
“My vision for basketball in Jamaica is to give the aspiring players something to look forward to. Yes, it would be good to get to the NBA or Europe, but if we are to be honest, we know chances of getting there are slim.
“So, my goal for Jamaica is to have a league that our younger players can look forward to, a league from which they can make a living, it seems far-fetched, but not impossible. So for me it starts with the NBL and so I plan to bring entertainment and professionalism to the league,” Cassell added.
Matthew-Dane Henry, of Upper Room Eagles, shared similar sentiments.
"Upper Room is aiming for a championship and in doing so, we plan to bring a certain level of professionalism, tenacity and energy to ensure that the entertainment value for the fans is at optimum. That three-year break was like torture, so thanks to the sponsors for coming on board and like you, we are looking forward to healthy competition and intensity,” he said.
Meanwhile, JABA president Paulton Gordon, expressed delight that the league is back on the basketball calendar to showcase the best local-based basketball talent and aspiring national payers who will display their skills in the presence of national coaches.
The other confirmed teams are, UWI Running Rebels, Rae Town Raptors, Tivoli Wizards, Falmouth Saints, Central Celtics, Spanish Town Spartans, and Portmore Flames.
An all-star NBL team will be selected mid-season to play against the visiting University of Missouri NCAA team during the summer.
“We are looking forward to a good four months of solid basketball and not only that but the partnership with the Ministry of National Security will help us take basketball into some of the communities and to use it as a tool for behaviour modification, so we are excited about that,” Gordon stated.
To achieve that goal, Gordon explained that though games will be played primarily at the National Stadium courts, they will move away at some point to select venues in Montego Bay, Ocho Rios and possibly St Mary.
“We want to move the games outside of the urban hubs that are quite familiar with basketball so we will be playing some of the games in Montego Bay and we also think there is huge potential in St Ann and St Mary. So we want to carry high level basketball into that space so that more persons can become more familiar and interested in participating in the game,” he noted.
Bob Myers reportedly stepping down as Warriors’ president, GM
Bob Myers is reportedly stepping down as president and general manager of the Golden State Warriors after leading the franchise to four NBA titles during his 11 years at the helm.
The news was first reported Tuesday by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
The 48-year-old Myers joined the Warriors’ front office in 2011 and was promoted to GM in April 2012.
Since taking over, he hired Steve Kerr as coach, signed Stephen Curry to two supermax contracts, drafted Draymond Green and oversaw the deals for Kevin Durant, Andre Iguodala and Andrew Wiggins.
Under his direction, he helped build the Warriors into one of the most successful franchises in the NBA with four titles and six total trips to the Finals in the last nine years and was twice named the league’s executive of the year.
Golden State, however, was eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semi-finals 2 ½ weeks ago – the franchise’s first playoff loss before the Finals under Kerr.
During Myers' 11 seasons as GM, the Warriors compiled a 571-304 regular-season record – the most wins for any team over that span.
Myers’ decision to step down is the first of what could be a number of major changes for the Warriors this offseason.
Green has a player option on his contract for the 2023-24 season and Klay Thompson is entering the final year of his deal and is eligible for an extension.
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