During the regular season, the Los Angeles Lakers lost all four games they played against the Oklahoma City Thunder by an average margin of 29.3 points per game. In Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinals series, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and company asserted that dominance.
The Thunder blew out the Lakers 108-90 to take a 1-0 lead in the series. Chet Holmgren led OKC in scoring with 24 points, along with 12 rebounds and three blocks. Gilgeous-Alexander and Ajay Mitchell scored 18 points apiece and combined for 10 assists.
LeBron James tallied a game-high 27 points on an efficient 12-of-17 shooting, but he didn't get much help outside of Rui Hachimura, who had 18 points.
Austin Reaves, in particular, struggled mightily and finished with just eight points on 3-of-16 shooting. He failed to connect any of his five attempts from deep. While Reaves had five rebounds and six assists, he also turned the ball over a team-high four times.
The 27-year-old Reaves received a ton of backlash for his performance, but the Lakers were quick to defend him and give him a vote of confidence.
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Lakers head coach JJ Redick didn't sugarcoat his words and emphasized that Reaves had a bad game, but he expressed his belief in him and his ability to bounce back.
"He didn't play well, but he's gonna bounce back," Redick said postgame, per Lakers Nation. "He's a great player."
For what it's worth, it doesn't look like Reaves is letting his bad game affect him mentally. He acknowledged that he played poorly, but he's already thinking about how he can do better in Game 2.
"Obviously the easy thing is to make more shots," Reaves stated when asked what he needs to do in their next showdown with the Thunder, per Lakers Nation.
"I got to my spots multiple times and just missed a couple easy shots. But for the most part, gotta limit the turnovers, they pressure the ball really well. Gotta give us an opportunity to get a shot on goal every possession."
The Lakers and Thunder will play Game 2 at Paycom Center on Thursday. Sure enough, a lot of eyes will be on Reaves and whether he can give James some much-needed support to help L.A. tie the series.
