Undrafted Austin Reaves Scripts History Beating Shaq and Wilt In Elite Efficiency Record

Austin Reaves scripted history during the Lakers' 135-118 win over the Clippers at the Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday. The Lakers guard erupted for 31 points on 81.2% true shooting, moving past Shaquille O’Neal and Wilt Chamberlain on the franchise’s list of ultra-efficient 30-point games.

Real Sports spotlighted Reaves’ feat on X (formerly Twitter), noting how he etched his name into Lakers history with his elite efficiency performance.

"Austin Reaves passes Shaq & Wilt in all-time Lakers games with 30+ PTS on 80%+ TS," Real Sports captioned the post.

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Austin Reaves passes Shaq & Wilt in all-time Lakers games with 30+ PTS on 80%+ TS.

Austin Reaves put on a show against the Clippers, dropping 31 points on 16 shots from the field and seven free throws. With this performance, he notched his 10th career game scoring 30 or more points while shooting over 80% true shooting, moving ahead of Lakers legends Wilt Chamberlain and Shaquille O’Neal in the record books.

The guard has scored 30+ points in four games this season, hitting over 80% true shooting in three of them. His first came against the Sacramento Kings, where he exploded for 51 points on 22 field-goal attempts and 10 free throws, posting an incredible 96.59% true shooting.

He reached the mark again in the next game against the Portland Trail Blazers, scoring 41 points on 22 field-goal attempts and 8 free throws, with an 80.33% true shooting. His most recent performance came last night against the Clippers, where he posted 31 points on a true shooting percentage of 81.2%.

Reaves, who went undrafted in 2021, has grown into a bona fide star and is enjoying a breakout season. While he’s etched his name into Lakers history with his elite efficiency, he ranks 28th in the league with a 65.2% true shooting average per game.

Austin Reaves opens up on “playing the right way” after combining for 99 points alongside Luka Doncic and LeBron James

After missing LeBron James for the first 14 games of the season, the Lakers had been heavily reliant on Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic. However, the trio has played together for the last three games and exploded against the Clippers last night.

Combining for 99 points, Reaves offered his views on their performance.

"We just played the right way. Took open shots, but just stuck to schemes and got the ball where we wanted to get it," Reaves said. "Especially with Bron and Luka, they demand such a double team a lot of the games and that means someone's going to be open and you can play four on three basketball."

Doncic spearheaded the attack with 43 points, while Reaves and LeBron added 31 and 25 points, respectively.