Austin Reaves and the Los Angeles Lakers are facing a challenging situation as they trail the Oklahoma City Thunder 3-0 in their playoff series, according to a May 11 statement. The team is preparing for Game 4 on Monday, aiming to avoid elimination and extend their season.
Reaves addressed the team’s approach following their Game 3 loss. “You come and compete,” the Lakers guard said after the defeat. “There’s a bunch of guys in this locker room that are competitors and basically the message in the locker room after the game was we’re gonna come in here Monday and we’re gonna get a win. Obviously this situation sucks, but that doesn’t give us the license to quit. We got to come in here and compete. We owe the organization that, we owe each other that, we owe our fans that. So we’re gonna come here Monday and play as hard as we can.”
Despite returning early from a Grade 2 left oblique strain, Reaves is working to help his team succeed against an Oklahoma City defense known for its physicality. The Thunder have historically made it difficult for Reaves offensively while also challenging him defensively with aggressive on-ball play.
Head coach JJ Redick has kept his team competitive throughout the series; they led at halftime during both Games 2 and 3 but struggled in second halves due to turnovers. Limiting these mistakes will be crucial if Los Angeles hopes to secure a win in Game 4.
Reaves also highlighted how turnovers have hurt them against Oklahoma City both during this series and throughout regular season matchups. He stressed that reducing turnovers remains an important focus heading into Monday’s game.