EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsThe first few hours after a team is eliminated in a playoff series rarely offer much time or space for reflection. The season is still too raw. The reasons behind winning and losing still feel important, even though it'll be months before they can be addressed.But Austin Reaves and LeBron James knew enough about the uncertainty of their respective futures last May to know it was best to say their goodbyes before they left the Lakers locker room."I wasn't a LeBron fan growing up. I was a Kobe guy," Reaves told ESPN, when asked what he remembered about the hug he and James shared that final night they shared as teammates. Reaves and the Lakers had just finished off an opening-night thrashing of the Golden State Warriors, 127-105."But then getting to know him as a human was one of the coolest things I've been able to experience."Reaves said he went into the offseason hoping they'd both be back with the Lakers this season. But he also knew the financial and roster-building reasons James would eventually choose to leave Los Angeles and start anew in Philadelphia.Reaves signed a four-year $180M deal to return to the Lakers, while James signed a two-year, $8M deal with the Sixers.James, who put up 14 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists in Philadelphia's opening-night win in New York on Tuesday, had embraced a co-starring role alongside Reaves and Luka Doncic. But it was a sacrifice for him, not something of his own choosing. Free agency offered James a choice for the first time in eight years and he chose to play elsewhere.Reaves understood James' choice, he said. He and James still text each other often. James sent him a pair of shoes the other day. But it doesn't mean Reaves doesn't miss James, nor does it mean that there isn't a a giant hole the Lakers must now fill."I never disregarded the basketball player he was when I was younger. I knew he was great, but then to full-circle being on the team with him, and then him giving me confidence every single day was incredible," Reaves said. "It gave me a better outlook on judging people because he treated me the same from the day he met me when I was a two-way player, to when I call him right now. I think that's what I miss the most."Reaves is now the longest tenured Laker, having been in L.A. the last six seasons. Bronny James, is next, entering his third season with the team, followed by Doncic having been in LA for 18 months. Jake LaRavia is fourth, in just his second season with the team."It's weird not seeing him tonight and seeing him in a Sixers jersey last night," Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr said before the game.It was a familiar opening night matchup for both teams -- the fourth time in six years the NBA has pitted them against each other on opening night. For Kerr and the Warriors, the rivalry with James goes even deeper, dating to the four straight years Golden State played James' Cavaliers teams in the Finals."Those Finals will live in the history of both franchises forever," Kerr said "That was an iconic era for both teams."This is a new Lakers team, and a new Warriors team."On this night, Doncic did his best to step into the leading role with a series of grand gestures on and off the court.He took out a full-page ad in the LA Times, addressed directly to the fans. He offered free parking in a nearby lot and free bike rides to the game."I know they work hard to get to the games, to get to the arena," Doncic said afterwards. "So I've always had something in me that I need to have that connection with the fans. So just trying to welcome them to the new season so that they know that we really appreciate the support."Before the game he grabbed a microphone and addressed the home crowd.."Hello, Laker Nation," Doncic said. "Thank you for supporting us. It's the start of something new. It's gonna be a special season, so thank you for your support."Reaves couldn't believe what he was hearing. "I heard his voice and I was like, 'What the hell's going on?'" Reaves said. "There's no way this is actually him."Doncic might be a showman on the court, but he's generally soft-spoken and short with his public comments."It just shows that he's bought in, he's all in," Reaves said. "Even in Slovenia [where Doncic hosted the team] he paid for everything. When his heart's somewhere ... He's going to take care of the community that he's in, he's going to take care of the people that's around him."Doncic certainly took care of his teammates on the court Wednesday, scoring 28 points, dishing seven assists and somehow putting new center Walker Kessler in the same statistical breath as Shaquille O'Neal and Wilt Chamberlain.Kessler's 12 made field goals without a miss were the most by a Laker since Chamberlain in 1969. His 10 dunks were the most in a game since O'Neal had 11 dunks, twice in the 2003 season. DDoncic's best moment of the night, a half-court shot to beat the halftime buzzer, was the kind of play that led James to call him "Luka Magic," and brought the sellout crowd to its feet."I knew that was going up before I got it in my hands," Doncic said, smiling. "I work on those."His style is very different from James.' But the responsibility they carry remains the same."The Lakers [are] one of the biggest organizations in the world, if not the biggest," Doncic said. "It's an honor to be the face of the franchise and I hope I can stay here a long time."
