Translator's Note: The original article was published in The Athletic. The data in the article are as of the time of publication of the original article (October 30, local time). The dates and times involved are all local time.

Minneapolis - Lakers head coach JJ Redick and his coaching staff stayed in Room 6 of the Target Center, which is the coaches' locker room, for a long time after the players had already boarded the team bus.

As the coaches cracked open beers and enjoyed their postgame meals, Redick pulled up footage of the final 6.6 seconds of Wednesday night's 116-115 victory over the Timberwolves.

Redick saw Austin Reeves receiving a pass from the sideline with Jayden McDaniels tightly guarding him. He watched as Deandre Ayton sprinted to the high post to set a screen. He saw Reaves cut between McDaniels and Rudy Gobert, accelerate into the paint, and then jump off his right foot.

Redick also saw Reeves hit a 10-foot floater over Donte DiVincenzo's head from the rim, his 120th point in the past three games, a two-pointer at the buzzer that won the Lakers the game.

"We just watched the tape and it was great, yeah, it was great," Redick told The The Athletic's interview, "But I tell you what's even better? He made that shot, and who did he turn and run to? His teammates. He ran right to his teammates." Although this was the second time in three games that Reeves left the arena with the game ball (he left with the ball under his arm after scoring 51 points in Sacramento), Wednesday's achievement was a collective effort.

Jack Laravia played his best game since joining the team, sweeping away the minus-27 haze against the Trail Blazers on Monday. He scored 27 points on 10 of 11 shots. Ayton dominated the matchup with Gobert, scoring 17 points and 10 rebounds. Dalton Knect came off the bench and scored 15 points. Rui Hachimura scored 17 points and Jared Vanderbilt also grabbed 12 rebounds - including 6 offensive rebounds.

Everyone has a reason to celebrate. But with Luka Doncic recovering from minor finger and leg injuries, LeBron James still sidelined with sciatica, Reeves is at the center of it all.

On Wednesday, after scoring 51 points in Sacramento and 41 points against the Trail Blazers, Reeves scored 28 points and dished out 16 assists, of which the number of assists tied his career high. Despite his poor shooting touch from the outside, he still managed to gain an advantage against McDaniels, leading the team to a 54.2% field goal percentage.

"This must be attributed to the whole team... Although my offensive touch was not good, we were not affected by it," Reeves said at the post-game press conference. "They have been playing hard and encouraging me to do what I should do."

Reeves' performance in the early stages of this season has been improving. Obviously, scoring is one thing -- as of Wednesday's game, only Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has totaled more points than Reeves. But his continued growth in leadership has been particularly striking, and he has become perhaps the Lakers' most important player.

"He's proven that he's a tough guy. He did that last year. I think league-wide, he's viewed as a very good player. Maybe some people look at him - where he falls, I don't know. I don't care. But last year, I think he's proven that he's a tough guy," Redick said after the game. "He did that. To me. , I think the most important thing is that he has established himself as a leader. He is a leader on the field, and that is very important. That is what we need him to do, and he does it."

An easy way to judge leadership is how others react to your success. Doncic and James praised their duo on social media on Wednesday. Both also texted Reeves. On the court, Reeves was surrounded by his teammates. As he walked off the court, president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka put his arm around Reeves' shoulders.

And in the locker room, Vanderbilt half-jokingly talked about where Reeves would rank on the MVP list after playing five games.

"Obviously we know how good he is, whether he's the No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 or No. 4 option on offense, it doesn't matter," Vanderbilt told The Athletic said in an interview, "But now, let the world see what we already know - obviously we don't want anyone to get injured, but when injuries happen, it gives other people the opportunity to show their ability - he is proving his strength."

People saw the 50-point performance and Wednesday's buzzer-beater. But they don’t see the other side — the leadership Redick and Reeves have been talking about all summer.

After Monday’s game, Reeves texted LaRavia as his friend Trent Swaim drove him home—LaRavia had just experienced a difficult game at the time.

"Keep your head up, bro," Reeves wrote, "I don't care if you miss a hundred shots in a row. Keep shooting. Shoot when you get the chance. We need you now. You've been great. Forget about the last game."

"I got it," Laravia replied.

After hitting 10 of 11 shots from the field Wednesday, Laravia barged into ESPN's postgame interview with Reeves to celebrate with his teammates. Reeves responded.

"If you asked me two years ago if it would mean anything if I said that to someone, I don't know if it would," Reeves said in an interview with The Athletic. If all goes well, they will welcome back ninth player Marcus Smart on Friday in Memphis. Doncic should return shortly after that, while James' season debut is still scheduled for the second or third week of November.

For the second time this week, Reeves led the Lakers to an away victory.

"I don't remember the moment I saw the ball go in the basket. For some reason, I knew it was going in, and it was probably a little bit broken, and then I looked over to the bench and everybody was running toward me. It felt really good," Reeves said after the game. The team friendship we have built in a short period of time is great, and we will continue to maintain it."

"As I said, everyone comes back. Luka comes back quickly. "

Without them, the Lakers have a deeper understanding of themselves. This once again confirms some of the outside world's views on Reeves.

"We have a bunch of tough guys on this team, brother." Vanderbilt said viciously.

Author: Dan Woike

Translator: GWayNe