Austin Reaves’ career-high 51 points lead Lakers to win over Kings

SACRAMENTO — JJ Redick has made a message clear across his first two seasons as the Lakers head coach: players’ roles don’t change when their teammates aren’t available. Even when those teammates are two of NBA’s biggest stars in Luka Doncic and LeBron James.

Redick’s ask from the other players is for them to star within the framework of their respective roles that have been laid out for them – a sentiment best embodied on Sunday by Austin Reaves, who set a new career-high for points in the Lakers’ 126-120 win over the Sacramento Kings.

Reaves scored 51 points at Golden 1 Center, topping his previous career-high of 45 points he scored in the Feb. 8 home win over the Indiana Pacers last season, to go along with 10 rebounds and nine assists and a pair of steals.

Deandre Ayton also stepped up in light of the Lakers being without James and Doncic, recording a 21-point, 15-rebound double-double.

Reaves took a patient approach in leading the Lakers’ offense with the absences of Doncic and James.

He had seven points and two assists in the first quarter, with the Lakers leading 36-27 after Rui Hachimura made his first four shot attempts for 10 first-quarter points.

Reaves took over in the second, scoring over half (14) of the Lakers’ 26 points in the quarter to help them keep pace with a Sacramento offense that scored 35 points in the second to send the game tied at 62 going into halftime. He added another 15 in the third, putting him at 36 for the game, helping give the Lakers a 95-90 lead going into the fourth.

And the Lakers, who fell behind 101-97 early in the fourth while Reaves was on the bench, needed every bit of his scoring flurry in the final quarter.

Reaves made three pull-up 3-pointers within 2 ½ minutes of subbing back into the game in the fourth, putting him at 45 points, with his last one giving the Lakers a 108-101 lead.

The Lakers used Sacramento’s aggressive defensive schemes on Reaves against them, opening up scoring chances Ayton, Hachimura and Jake LaRavia.

Reaves broke his previous career-high with a floater that put the Lakers up 122-116 with two minutes left before making four free throws in the final 32 seconds for the first 50-point game of his NBA career.

Hachimura had 18 points, while Marcus Smart added 11 points and five assists. LaRavia finished with 11 points, six rebounds and five assists.

The Kings were led by Zach LaVine’s 32 points, and DeMar DeRozan’s 21 points, six rebounds and three assists. Dennis Schroder had an 18-point, 12-assist double-double, while Domantas Sabonis finished with 10 points and 14 rebounds.

The Lakers will host the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night to close out their back-to-back set.