Why was Austin Reaves moved to the Lakers’ bench? Darvin Ham, LeBron James assess guard’s reserve role

After a deep run in the 2023 postseason, the Lakers entered the 2023-24 season with high expectations. Less than a month into the year, a slow start has Los Angeles in search of answers to right the ship.

Nine games into the season, Lakers head coach Darvin Ham decided to shake things up by moving Austin Reaves out of the starting lineup, opting to bring the third-year guard off the bench in a win over the Suns.

The move comes as a bit of a shock as Reaves became a full-time starter late in the 2022-23 campaign, playing an integral role in the aforementioned deep playoff run. That said, early returns suggest the move could wind up being permanent.

Why was Reaves moved to the bench? Here is what Ham has said about the decision and what it means moving forward.

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Why was Austin Reaves moved to the Lakers’ bench

Entering the Lakers’ meeting with the Suns on Nov. 10, Ham made the decision to move Reaves to the bench in favor of fifth-year wing Cam Reddish, who signed with Los Angeles during the 2023 offseason.

The results speak for themselves: Reddish finished with 17 points in 28 minutes while shooting 5 of 8 from deep, including a late dagger to put the Lakers up five points with 70 seconds remaining. Reaves, who saw 35 minutes of action off the bench, finished with 15 points (on 6-of-11 shooting) and seven assists.

During the game’s most crucial moments, both Reaves and Reddish were on the floor.

To put it plainly, the move was beneficial for everyone involved. Following the game, Ham said the lineup change came down to one thing: balance.

“Everybody agreed that we needed to change up the music a little bit. It wasn’t a demotion for Austin. It was just a realignment,” Ham said postgame.

“If anybody remembers those great San Antonio teams where everyone in the world knew Manu [Ginobili] was a starter,” he continued. “But sometimes to balance out your lineup, you have to put a player of his magnitude in a reserve role so now when the starters go to sit down and take their break, you’re not totally falling off a cliff. You have balance in the second unit.”

In the early stages of the season, the Lakers have floundered in the minutes where LeBron James sits. There’s only been one full game to draw from, but Reaves was tasked with leading non-LeBron lineups for 11 of the 12 minutes that the 38-year-old sat against the Suns.

Consider James impressed with Reaves’ ability to revert back to a reserve role.

“He’s just a big-time player. He can fit in any role,” James said in his walk-off interview. “When you have a guy that can fit in any role — starter, come off the bench, play on the ball, play off the ball — it makes it a lot easier on the team and AR can do that, so, easy transition for him.”

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Reaves’ second bench performance of the 2023-24 season came in a game where James was sidelined, meaning all 48 minutes were non-LeBron minutes. Again, the results were encouraging, as Reaves finished with 18 points, four rebounds and four assists in 28 minutes off the bench.

With respect to the Lakers’ rotation and potential lineups, it’s important to note just how much the team has been impacted by injuries.

10 games into the season, the Lakers have lost 35 man-games to injury, with assumed starter Jarred Vanderbilt yet to make his season debut and offseason acquisition Gabe Vincent missing six of the team’s first 10 games.

Reaves providing stability and balance to the second unit could be just what this Lakers team needs in order to ease the process of reincorporating Vanderbilt and Vincent, who has struggled mightily in his first games in the purple and gold.

The small-game sample size suggests that moving Reaves to the bench was the right decision, as the Lakers are 2-0 since making the adjustment. Ultimately, though, it’s a reminder that while starting the game may be important, closing the game says even more.

Reaves closing against both Phoenix and Portland — and Ham’s Ginobili comparison — should tell you everything you need to know about how the Lakers view their undrafted gem, regardless of his role.