The Lakers head coach explains why Reaves deserves nothing but to become an All-Star player this 2025-26 season.
No one believed more in Austin Reaves' immense potential within the Los Angeles Lakers than head coach J.J. Redick.
Austin Reaves
Austin Reaves
Austin Reaves
MIN: 36.92
PTS: 27.76 (63.37%)
REB: 5.57
As: 6.71
ST: 1.05
BL: 0.19
TO: 3.33
GM: 21
Addressing the media on Monday, Redick boldly claimed that the Lakers star deserves an All-Star nod this year.
"I would imagine it would mean a lot to him—a whole lot. He and I have had discussions about how surreal it is for him to be playing at this level and in this position. I absolutely think he’ll be an All-Star this year," Redick said. "You always have to be careful as an athlete to stop and smell the roses. With the nature of competition, particularly over 82 games, there’s really no time to take your foot off the gas.
"That’s the opposite of who he is. He’s the type of player who consistently wants to get better, wants more, is willing to put in the work, and is willing to go out on the court and play hard enough to go for more. He’s proven that over and over again."
The rise of Reaves has been one of the major storylines in the NBA this 2025-26 season.
Reaves' averages are suddenly gone off the charts, as he's been putting up career-highs in points (27.8), assists (6.7) and rebounds (5.6) for 21 games so far.
The brilliance of the 27-year-old strongly helped the Lakers to deliver a strong progress, currently in the 4th spot of the Western Conference with a 19-8 record.
Upon his arrival as the team's newest coach, Redick simply believed that the undrafted sensation had what it takes to be considered one of the top players in the world.
"Our first conversation when I took the job was about whether he was going to be an All-Star," Redick added. "I believe in him. And by the way, I’m not saying that to every player—I said it because I believe it."
Given his improved statistical numbers and the Lakers' standing, Reaves definitely has a shot to make it to the cut of the two U.S. lineups in the brand-new format of the All-Star Game.
And should he make it, he'll just become the sixth undrafted player to be an All-Star in the history of the league.
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