The Los Angeles Lakers will look to extend their winning streak to three games in Wednesday's Western Conference showdown with the Sacramento Kings, and their role players did their part in the early going.
While LeBron James and Anthony Davis got most of the headlines and defensive attention in the purple and gold, Austin Reeves and Rui Hachimura did the heavy lifting in the first half against Sacramento.
Reeves got off to a great start, posting 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field and 5-of-7 from deep, three rebounds and two assists in the first half. Hachimura also scored 17 points on 8-of-11 field goals and grabbed 3 rebounds.
Their performance sparked reactions from social media.
Reeves is a great third and fourth option for the Lakers, who are having the best season of his career. He averaged 15.8 points, 5.5 assists, and 4.1 rebounds per night, all career high marks.
As in the first half, there were moments when James and Davis were on the floor as offensive playmakers.
Although Hachimura didn't have the same impact as Reaves, he still played as an important second piece and averaged 12.5 points per game. If the Lakers are going to take on the top teams in the Western Conference come playoff time, they'll need him and others to produce when the defense focuses on its star players.
Despite strong plays from Reaves and Hachimura, the Lakers still trailed the Kings 60-56 at intermission.