Paul Pierce says Austin Reaves is playing at ‘superstar level’ for Lakers

Fifth-year guard Austin Reaves has emerged as a third star for the Los Angeles Lakers this season along with floor general Luka Doncic and forward LeBron James. He’s been one of the truly elite offensive players in the NBA since the season began, as he’s averaging 28.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 6.8 assists per contest across 18 games played.

Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce recently gave Reaves his flowers for how he’s elevated his game. He said that the undrafted player is playing like a “superstar,” though he also claimed that Reaves still has something to prove. According to the 2008 NBA champion, folks will judge Reaves based on how he fares when the playoffs come around.

“Austin Reaves is playing at a superstar level,” Pierce said. “But this is where he’s gonna be judged at: He’s gonna be judged on his playoffs. As good as he looks right now, ’cause what we saw last year in the playoffs, people was like, ‘He’s not it.’

“But to his credit, that was his first playoffs really to where he had the spotlight on him, and he had to run into a championship-caliber team like Denver. So now, we gotta see what you do in the playoffs because if the Lakers don’t re-sign him, somebody’s gonna give him that money. You know what I’m saying?

“I think he’s a great No. 2 or 3 guy on a championship team.”

Time will tell if Reaves will be able to carry over his current level of play into the 2026 NBA Playoffs, but he will probably have to for the Lakers to win another championship. His playoff track record is a mixed bag. He wasn’t all that productive in the team’s short stint in the 2025 NBA Playoffs.

Los Angeles got booted by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the opening round (Pierce was likely thinking of a different season when he mentioned Denver), and Reaves saw his numbers take a dip across the board in the series compared to how he fared in the 2024-25 regular season.

He averaged just 16.2 points per game in the playoffs last season on 41.1 percent shooting from the field and 31.9 percent shooting from 3-point range. Not only that, but he nearly averaged as many turnovers per game (2.8) as assists (3.6).

In all likelihood (barring a Lakers collapse or unexpected injury from the guard), Reaves will soon get an opportunity to redeem himself for how he fared in the 2025 playoffs, as the Lakers are on track to end up with one of the best records in the West. Los Angeles holds the No. 2 seed with a record of 16-5, and only the Oklahoma City Thunder are ahead of the team in the standings.

Maybe the 2026 NBA Playoffs will go down as Reaves’ coming-out party where he cements himself as a bona fide star, perhaps even in a playoff run that ends in a title for Los Angeles.