OKC Thunder continue to shut off Austin Reaves in Game 1 win over Lakers
Oklahoma City Thunder continue to shut off Austin Reaves in Game 1 win over Los Angeles Lakers.
At this point, Austin Reaves must feel haunted anytime he's inside Paycom Center. It's been pure bad vibes this year when the Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Lakers squared off. That has continued into their NBA playoff Round 2 series.
The Thunder came away with a 108-90 Game 1 win over the Lakers. It took a little longer than anticipated, but the reigning NBA champions turned this into another ho-hum victory. What makes this even more impressive is that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander looked human with 18 points and seven turnovers.
None of it mattered. The Thunder clamped down on the Lakers' offense. While LeBron James had a retro outing with 27 points and six assists, Austin Reaves couldn't pick up the slack of Luka Doncic's absence to make things interesting down the stretch.
Reaves had a forgettable eight points on 3-of-16 shooting and six assists. He added to his recent trend of no-showing against OKC's league-best defense. Over the last two seasons, he's averaged an ugly 16.