"Don’t care what ppl say. Not trading him": Lakers fans react to Austin Reaves' near 35-point triple-double in loss 

On New Year's Eve, Austin Reaves came close to getting the fourth triple-double of his career. Though his prolific stats ultimately fell by the wayside as the Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers 122-110, Lakers fans couldn't help but broadcast their feelings on the 26-year-old spitfire. Reaves ended the night with a game-high 35 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists.

Some fans made it a point to declare Reaves as an immovable piece as the Lakers front office gears up for the Feb. 6 deadline:

"Don't care what ppl say. Not trading him," one fan said on X/Twitter. "Best non rookie contract in the league."

"He's untouchable in trade talks," said another.

Other members of the Lakers faithful bemoaned the lack of production from Reaves' teammates not named LeBron James or Anthony Davis:

"Only who never gave up. Sad to see that his big brothers already gave up since the 3rd quarter," commented one fan.

"I need Rui traded," demanded another.

Rui Hachimura finished with seven points on 30% shooting from the field, while Max Christie (five points) and Dalton Knecht (four points, 0-of-5 from deep) didn't offer much help either in this 12-point Lakers loss.

Reaves ended up having more points, rebounds and assists than LeBron James (not to mention outscoring Anthony Davis by seven points). This comparison perhaps heightened one particular fan's feelings on the aging James:

"Lakers should get rid of LeBron and his kid for Jimmy butler," a fan proposed. "A 40 year old is not going to get them a championship."

Austin Reaves drops bombshell about Lakers' Christmas Day win

Reaves has been in the NBA for four seasons now, and his confidence levels are showing in many different ways. On Christmas Day, his belief in his ability was on full display as he did something that wasn't mapped out for him.

In a clip posted on X for the "LA on the Move" video series, Reaves reveals that the final play drawn up in the Los Angeles Lakers-Golden State Warriors game looked and sounded different in the huddle.

"I'm gonna be honest with y'all. That last play was not for me. It was for 'Bron," admitted Reaves in the video. "But I got the opportunity to go win us a game, and, you know, that's what ended up happening."

A closer look at the Lakers' after timeout (ATO) play shows that Draymond Green kept a body on James as Christie looked to inbound the ball. Steph Curry, who was guarding the inbounding pass, anticipated where Christie wanted to throw the ball in and denied James as well.

Christie ended up passing the ball to Reaves, who was being guarded by Andrew Wiggins. Reaves drove baseline and, in the absence of help defense from the Warriors, used his quickness to get the layup to go in before Wiggins could react properly.

It's performances like these — the clutch basket on Christmas and the near triple-double on New Year's Eve — that make Reaves indispensable in the eyes of Lakers fans.