Something's gotta give when a team inserts a massive piece like LeBron James into its scheme of things. For Bill Simmons , Los Angeles Lakers stud, Austin Reaves , has to bend and change role on the fly to make room for the things LBJ does, making him less effective in the past couple of games.
"It's funny what you said about (Darius) Garland. I feel the same way about Austin Reaves ," The Ringer founder told Rob Mahoney on "The Bill Simmons Podcast." "I love Austin Reaves when LeBron's not playing. But when all three of them are playing, all of a sudden, Austin Reaves is not as impactful or whatever because he's on the same team with Luka Doncic and LeBron James."
Simmons pointed out AR-15's dwindling production, especially in the Lakers' road win against the Philadelphia 76ers . Coming into the game averaging 28, the Purple and Gold shooting guard only mustered 11 in the hard-fought victory.
To Simmons, that's enough proof that Reaves will eventually be the odd man out in favor of his more decorated teammates.
On the surface, Simmons seemed to hit the nail on the head. After all, Reaves only scored 26 points over the last two games, almost two points fewer than his season averages (27.8). However, Bill has been on the "trade AR" train for a while now, so he will point out stats that support his narrative with tunnel vision.
The fact is that, as the numbers show, Reaves is not as bad as Simmons put him out to be.
According to Statmuse, AR is averaging 29.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 8.2 assists in 13 games without LBJ, along with 49/35/97 shooting splits. To put that in perspective, he puts up as many points as Nikola Jokic and dished more assists per contest than Russell Westbrook , Shai Gilgeous-Alexander , and Tyrese Maxey (to name a few) when LeBron sits out.
Now, with James out there, AR is, well, still playing at an All-Star level . He averaged 25.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.4 assists, still slightly higher than Kevin Durant , Devin Booker , and Jamal Murray . Moreover, his rebounding numbers are still marginally better than Jaylen Brown 's and Cade Cunningham 's.
Simmons conveniently highlighted Reaves' output at a time when he is clearly hitting a wall. He never mentioned that AR dropped 44 points against the Toronto Raptors with LeBron as his running mate.
Whether he maintains such production over the course of the season is another story. Still, it's short-sighted to claim that Reaves is not as impactful with LeBron as he is without him.
Related: Isiah Thomas thought he could've gotten LeBron James and Dwyane Wade for the Knicks in 2010
James has returned to the Lakers lineup for only eight games so far, and the team has been 6-2 in those contests. If anything, it's an encouraging sign that maybe, with some adjustments from the coaching staff, the Purple and Gold might find themselves contending in a brutal Western Conference.
Still, as Simmons pointed out, it raises questions about Reaves' fit alongside Doncic and James. That trio will not be able to hang with the best of the West defensively. Should the Lakers sell high on AR and dangle him in trade talks for Giannis Antetokounmpo ? After all, they may not be able to afford him if he declines his player option next year.
Whatever the case, Simmons is definitely overstating Austin's drop-off playing next to LeBron. On the other hand, he is not wrong to suggest Reaves could show more of his game in a different setting. He is not going anywhere yet, but nothing is guaranteed in this business.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Dec 11, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
