That frustration boiled over in the second quarter of the Lakers’ loss to the Boston Celtics on Sunday as Reaves picked up a technical after a foul was called on Marcus Smart. Afterwards, Reaves broke down what led to the technical, feeling it wasn’t warranted and that far more worse things are said to officials without a tech being issued.

“I mean, I thought JB (Jaylen Brown) elbowed Marcus [Smart] in the face. I didn’t say anything disrespectful,” Reaves said. “He told me I got a tech because I clapped my hands. I just said, ‘Offense foul.’ Or offensive, I think I said [it] over and over again. I kind of walked by him, didn’t turn around and say anything else, but he told me that it’s an automatic tech when you clap, I guess towards a ref.

“There’s, yeah, I don’t know. I’ve heard way more disrespectful things said to officials and, and nothing, no tech or anything. But yeah, I mean, there’s a level of frustration. You want to stand up for your teammates. But also, just you know, I know you elbowed him in the face and he might have fouled him before. But yeah, I didn’t think that it warranted a tech, but it’s not for me to say.”

If that is all that Reaves said, he certainly has a point in that there are far worse things being said to officials. But the league has made it more of a focus in recent years about different acts towards the refs also being unacceptable.

The more important point for Reaves and the Lakers as a whole is whether they let that frustration towards officials affect them too much. And Reaves admitted that the team and himself specifically need to be better about that.

“Yeah. I think we can get that way sometimes,” Reaves added. “We play down hill and we do shoot a lot of free throws, but I think that’s kind of a play style thing. We don’t get up a lot of 3s, we attack down hill and see contact and I think that’s the reason we do shoot a lot of free throws. But when you don’t get those calls, you can’t stay frustrated. You gotta move on to the next play. I’m a culprit of that. I gotta do better in those situations and our whole team does as well.”

Like Reaves said, the Lakers are a team that plays downhill and attacks the rim constantly between himself, Doncic and James, and that is why they are able to get those calls and live at the free throw line. But when things don’t go their way, the Lakers can’t let that anger boil over as the game quickly gets out of hand and they give themselves no chance of climbing back.

JJ Redick: Lakers offense was awful vs. Celtics

Normally when the Lakers suffer a bad loss it is their defense that came up short, but against the Celtics head coach JJ Redick felt the offense was far below their normal standard.

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Unfortunately though, they have not had a lot of time on the court together this season to really build up that chemistry. Because of injuries, Doncic, James and Reaves have played just 12 games together this season and are still not quite clicking.

Following the Lakers’ loss to the Boston Celtics, Doncic spoke on this, admitting that the group isn’t where they want to be, but still believing they have a ton of potential.

“I think you see that we’re not there yet,” Doncic said after the loss. “Like I said, we’re working on it. But there should be big potential about us three playing together.”

No matter how talented players are, there needs to be a lot of game reps in order for everything to lock in and these three just haven’t had that this season. LeBron missed the beginning of the season due to sciatica and then Reaves was out for basically a month and a half with his calf injury. And while Luka hasn’t dealt with any major injury, he has had to sit out games here and there due to minor ailments and issues.

This trio still has a ton of potential as Doncic noted, especially with the right role players around them, they just need to figure out the right lineups to really maximize what they are capable of. And now that they are all healthy, head coach JJ Redick and the Lakers coaching staff will try out all possibilities and see what works best.

The Lakers still have plenty of time to come together down the stretch of the season and if Doncic, James and Reaves can come together and reach their potential, they will be a very tough team to deal with once the postseason arrives.

Austin Reaves admits he and Lakers can’t stay frustrated at officials

One self-inflicted issue that has plagued the Lakers this season is that they have a tendency to chirp at the officials. Austin Reaves spoke on this, admitting that he and the Lakers must do a better job at not staying frustrated at the refs and letting it spill over into their play.

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Following the All-Star break, Reaves was finally freed from his minutes restriction and was re-inserted back into the starting lineup against the L.A. Clippers. The Clippers traded away starters James Harden and Ivica Zubac, but have still remained a competitive team under head coach Tyronn Lue.

While the Clippers put up a valiant effort, Reaves helped lead the Lakers to a hard-fought 125-122 win. Reaves poured in 29 points on 9-of-15 shooting, including going 4-of-5 from the 3-point line. He even drew an offensive foul on Bennedict Mathurin in the fourth quarter, resulting in the Clippers guard’s disqualification.

After the win, head coach JJ Redick called Reaves’ defensive play the biggest play of the game and praised his overall offensive performance.

“Yeah, I thought the charge was the play of the game,” Redick said. “Frankly, the second charge would’ve been the play of the game had made the right call, which they didn’t. And you know, they (Clippers) make a three, but you know, that was a huge play given the circumstances. He was fantastic tonight, you know, other than the two turnovers there and the third in traffic.

“He just played a super efficient night. I mean, look, Luka [Dončić] was fantastic, and I’m sure you’ll have questions about him. I thought [Marcus] Smart and DA (Deandre Ayton) in that fourth quarter were really difference makers for us. Smart was fantastic on defense all night. And then seven minutes left in the fourth or whatever it was, and he hasn’t taken a shot. We come out of a timeout, he makes a three, and then he makes another one. Then he gets the and-one. So, just huge from him. I guess it was a long two, but in my mind, it was a three. But, just huge stuff from him. Leadership in the huddles, all that. And then DA was great and very engaged and just was able to execute our defensive game plan at a really high level.”

Reaves looked exactly like the player that started off the 2025-26 season so well and showed why he was in legitimate All-Star consideration before going down with a calf injury. The Clippers boast a stingy defense, but Reaves was able to make them pay from outside and at the free throw line.

Reaves has a knack for manufacturing points, but he’s also a willing defender who competes on that end of the floor despite not being the most physical or athletic player. The charge against Mathurin came a crucial point in the game as him scoring would have put the Lakers’ in trouble.

For the Lakers to be successful the rest of the way, they’ll need all three of their stars to be playing at the highest levels. The Lakers don’t have much room for error given some of their defensive deficiencies, but offensively Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Reaves can hang with any other team in the league.

Austin Reaves discusses how healthy Lakers can gel for remainder of season

A clean bill of health has been hard to come by for the Lakers during the 2025-26 season as nearly every player has missed time. LeBron James missed the start of the year, while Luka Doncic has dealt with several nicks and bruises. Austin Reaves also had an extended absence due to a calf injury he re-aggravated on Christmas Day.

Now that the group is healthy, Reaves discussed how they can gel for the remainder of the season.

Unlike the Lakers, the Clippers made multiple trades at the deadline. The Clippers shipped out James Harden and Ivica Zubac, leaving just Kawhi Leonard to star for the team. While the Clippers roster looks worse on paper, they’ve remained a competitive team that still can win on any given night so the Lakers couldn’t afford to let their guard down.

The Lakers took the upper hand in the first quarter behind an offensive explosion led by their “Big 3” but the Clippers hung around the rest of the way. The game got even closer in the second half, with the Lakers and Clippers trading the lead.

Both teams battled hard and the game itself came down to the final possession as the Lakers turned the basketball over, giving the Clippers a chance to send things to overtime. Fortunately, Nicolas Batum missed the game-tying 3-pointer and the Lakers escaped with a 125-122 victory.

Luka Doncic showed no physical setbacks in his first official game back with the Lakers as he enjoyed going up against a Clippers team he knows quite well at this point. Doncic was relentless from the opening tip, looking to score in the paint and from the outside. Doncic was particularly effective from beyond the arc as he hit several difficult attempts.

Doncic’s scoring outburst continued into the fourth as he relished going up against Kris Dunn. Overall, Luka finished with a game-high 38 points to go along with 11 assists, six rebounds and two steals.

Austin Reaves returned to the starting lineup after it was announced his minutes restriction was finally lifted and he responded with an efficient scoring night. The time off did Reaves well as he looked 100 percent on the floor, scoring and playing with his usual high effort on both sides of the basketball.

Reaves was excellent scoring the basketball, dropping 29 points on 9-of-15 shooting including 4-of-5 from the 3-point line. He also added six rebounds, two assists and two steals.

What’s next for the Lakers

The Lakers will honor former head coach Pat Riley with a statue ceremony prior to their game on Sunday against the Boston Celtics. They’ll then continue their home stand on Tuesday against the Orlando Magic.

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The All-Star break came at the perfect time for the Lakers and Reaves as the group has been banged up with various injuries. Reaves was able to make his return to the lineup just before the break after missing over a month with a calf injury.

The time off did Reaves well as he showed no ill effects from his injury and the All-Star break afforded him even more opportunities to reset physically and mentally. With a game against the L.A. Clippers on tap for Friday, Reaves has been cleared from his minutes restriction so he should make his way back to the starting lineup.

After Thursday’s practice, Reaves expressed his excitement for the remainder of the schedule and getting more reps with his teammates.

“It feels great. We still have some time to get on-court reps with our full group and that’s exciting. Today was a good first step in kicking off these 28 games, so very excited,” he said.

Reaves acknowledged that he, Luka Doncic and LeBron James are still building their continuity but also emphasized the entire team could use reps on the floor together.

“It’s very important,” Reaves added. “You have those games from last year, but obviously you still have a learning curve of how to play alongside one another and that’s with everybody else on the team as well. Just continuing to build that continuity and confidence and every single possession we’re locked in with five guys that are on the court so very excited.”

Injuries have derailed any chance of the Lakers players getting on-court reps, but with the team finally healthy they’ve got to maximize each game. Practice time will be rare as the upcoming schedule features a game every other day at minimum until the end of March, so in-game reps will be of the utmost importance.

A fully healthy Los Angeles team is a viable playoff threat, but Reaves and company still need to put in the work to play their best basketball on both ends of the floor.

Austin Reaves’ biggest goal is winning a championship with the Lakers

Austin Reaves has proven all he cares about is winning, making him a perfect player to represent the purple and gold. In fact, Reaves said that his biggest goal is to win a championship with the Lakers.

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