DeMarcus Cousins & Danny Green Send Warning to Austin Reaves Over Lakers Future

Austin Reaves had 21 points, five assists and four rebounds against the Warriors, solid stats that his eight turnovers wiped out as the Lakers watched a 25-point lead disappear. Afterward, Reaves took full responsibility. Now two former NBA players have turned that night into a larger question about the Lakers’ second star and what he must fix going forward.

Speaking on Gil’s Arena, Danny Green said Austin Reaves should be expected to deliver more next to Luka Doncic. “When you got killers and closers like Luka and Austin, who’s supposed to be,” Green said. “Luka has been that guy. Austin’s kind of been struggling. He’s really not. Struggling or being himself?”

Green pointed to Reaves’ hot start last season as evidence. “Well, last year he started out. He was averaging 28,” he said. DeMarcus Cousins cut that off. “We ain’t talking about last year,” Cousins said. “We had, oh, man. We talking about fresh start.”

Cousins agreed on what the problem is. Green said the numbers would be “not bad” without the turnovers, and Cousins replied, “That’s my problem.” Green finished the thought. “The turnovers really was hurting him,” he said. “But I think he could be a little more efficient.”

The discussion comes at an important point in Reaves' career. After LeBron James left in free agency, the Lakers made Reaves the No. 2 option behind Doncic and gave him a major new contract. That raised the expectations on a player who spent years as a complementary scorer.

Why Reaves’ Turnovers Are the Sticking Point for His Role Next to Luka Doncic

The turnover figures support Cousins and Green on one point. Reaves is averaging 4.8 turnovers per game, up from a career-worst 3.0 last season, while scoring 23.5 points on strong shooting percentages.

That is a notable cost for a player who runs a large share of the offense. No other Lakers starter handles the ball as much as Doncic and Reaves, so mistakes by either of them come with a greater risk. The Warriors game showed that, as the lead turned into a loss.

Where the pair have a point is on the long view. A second star on a championship team is judged against a high bar, and Green said 23 points with a high turnover rate does not clear it unless the defense is elite. In his view, Reaves needs to get back to the efficient 27 or 28 points he sometimes posted last season.

Cousins and Green did not say Reaves is a bad player. They said that for the Lakers to maintain a contender’s profile, the numbers have to improve in the specific area Reaves himself has pointed to. The segment ended on a warning: you can’t average five turnovers a game as a second option, and “if this is your second option, I’m scared.”

If he does that, the criticism will fade quickly. If not, the team's depth behind Doncic will be tested in the spring.