Lakers' Austin Reaves Sides With Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in Polarizing Debate
Los Angeles Lakers star Austin Reaves is set to face reigning NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round of the NBA playoffs.
Reaves recently shared his honest opinion of Gilgeous-Alexander ahead of Game 1 on Tuesday. The Lakers star was asked about Gilgeous-Alexander's knack for drawing fouls, which is a polarizing element of his game.
While fans and experts alike have accused the Thunder star of being a foul-baiter or a free-throw merchant, Reaves made it clear that he sees nothing wrong with Gilgeous-Alexander's style of play.
"I know that's a tough topic to talk about because everybody blows it out of proportion," Reaves said on Sunday, via Daniel Starkand of Lakers Nation. "He wants to win and is gonna do whatever it takes to win. If it's shoot 20 free throws, so be it.
"If I shoot 20 free throws, I'd be happy. I don't think there's any bad intentions with trying to get to the line."
Austin Reaves was asked about his and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's ability to draw fouls.
— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) May 3, 2026
"I know that's a tough topic to talk about because everybody blows it out of proportion. He wants to win and is gonna do whatever it takes to win. If it's shoot 20 free throws, so be it. If I… pic.twitter.com/tbwaO2i6e4
This season, Shai-Gilgeous Alexander is averaging 9.0 free-throw attempts per game. That number has shot up to 12.3 per contest in four games against the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the playoffs.
The four-time All-Star shot 89.8% from the charity stripe against the Suns, accounting for 11.0 out of his 33.8 points in the series.
Reaves is siding with Gilgeous-Alexander in this long-standing debate, though. The Lakers guard sees no issue whatsoever with how much Gilgeous-Alexander gets to the line.
Nevertheless, Reaves will do everything in his power to keep this at a minimum when the Lakers face the Thunder in the second round.
Keeping Gilgeous-Alexander away from the free-throw line will be a major challenge for Reaves and Co. However, this could well determine how successful the Lakers will be against the No. 1 seed Thunder.
OKC holds home-court advantage in this series. They will host Game 1 on Tuesday at Paycom Center, with tipoff scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET.
Related: Will Luka Doncic Play in Lakers-Thunder Series?
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This story was originally published May 3, 2026 at 5:33 PM.