Austin Reaves better than Kyrie Irving? Former champion’s bizarre take stuns panel

Lakers star Austin Reaves received a huge remark from former NBA player Nick Young on a recent segment of Gil's Arena

Austin Reaves better than Kyrie Irving? Former champion’s bizarre take stuns panel

Austin Reaves and Kyrie Irving

The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night, 125-109. The Lakers, anchored by Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic, improved their season record to 42-25. Notably, it is often Doncic who is at the receiving end of the praise and criticism. But this time around, it was Reaves who took home all the praise.

Interestingly, former NBA player Nick Young took it a notch ahead with his take regarding Reaves on Gil’s Arena Podcast. Young ignited an eventful scene with Gilbert Arenas when he said Austin Reaves was the finest second option in LeBron James‘ storied career, beating Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis. Young discussed how Reaves has improved his game for the Los Angeles Lakers lately and placed him among the top undrafted players in NBA history.

YouTube video

Right now at this stage… is Austin Reaves a better number 2 option than Kyrie?

Nick Young said

However, Young’s take did not sit right with Arenas and the other panelists. Not only that, just as Young said his take out loud, Arenas who was seated next to Young immediately got up and sat opposite to him. Although Arenas did display a dramatic reaction, Reaves has proved his mettle and stepped up in James’ absence.

He scored 30 points on 12-of-21 shooting, including five of his 13 three-pointers. Reaves also recorded seven rebounds, six assists, and two steals. So, Young does have a point here, especially with Irving out of the season due to an ACL injury. Additionally, Young was not the only person who praised Reaves after his recent performances.

First Take analyst Stephen A Smith also offered huge praise for Austin Reaves on the First Take Show. During a segment on the First Take show, Smith boldly claimed that Reaves is the best ‘third option’ in the NBA at the moment.

Stephen A. Smith offers huge praise towards Lakers star, Austin Reaves

Following his big-time game, Austin Reaves has set the sports world on fire with comments about him. Stephen A. Smith was one of the notable figures alongside Nick Young who praised Reaves for his recent matches. After his initial segment on First Take, Smith also took to X to offer praise for the Lakers star.

That’s right I said it. And I mean it. Austin Reaves is doing the damn thing. Much respect!

Stephen A Smith tweeted

During the 2024-25 NBA season, Reaves has appeared in 60 games. He averages 19.6 points per game, 6.0 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.2 steals. In addition to his statistics, Reaves is going 44.6% from the field and has made 36.6% of his three-pointers. Those stats justify Smith’s high praise. While there were some reservations about the four-year, $56 million Early Bird maximum deal he earned, Reaves has pacified all of them.

Luka Doncic called Austin Reaves ‘amazing’ after their recent win over San Antonio

The Lakers have had to rely heavily on Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves to handle the offense without James. The Lakers defeated the Spurs 125-109 in their most recent game. Doncic was impressed with Reaves’ ability to perform with such little rest over the past few matches and opened up about it.

I mean, this guy just scored 30 in his 4th game in 5 days. He’s an amazing player. For him to go undrafted is unbelievable. It’s not easy to go undrafted and play at this level and it’s amazing just to be by his side.

Luka Doncic said

Importantly, Reaves has scored at least 28 points in each of his previous four NBA games. He has offered critical offensive support to Doncic. In addition to scoring, Reaves has excelled with his defensive abilities, demonstrating his flexibility.

Reaves and Co. are doing their best to finish among the top 3 seeds of the Western Conference. Despite James being out with a groin injury, the Lakers have ample firepower in their roster to secure an NBA playoff berth before the end of the regular season.