Austin Reaves was one of the lone bright spots of the 2021-22 season for the Los Angeles Lakers. It was his rookie year, and he went from undrafted free agent to two-way signing all the way to regular rotation player by the end of the season. His chemistry with LeBron James was one of the main things that led to good basketball for L.A. in an otherwise dark season for the team.
And it was clear relatively early on in the season that the Lakers would not be a competitive team. They were 24-24 in late January, barely clinging on to a spot in the Play-In Tournament.