Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic were not immediate friends, but the Lakers duo eventually developed the NBA’s best basketball chemistry

Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic hardly spoke after the Lakers traded for Doncic in February 2025. Reaves told the California Post in an interview published Thursday that the two passed each other in the locker room without a word. The silence is long gone. Doncic leads the NBA at 36.0 points per game, Reaves is 16th at 24.4, and together they average 60.4, the most of any duo in the league. Reaves signed a four-year, $180 million deal in July, and Doncic has said he hopes to retire a Laker.How did Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic go from silent teammates to friends?Austin Reaves did not think he and Luka Doncic would ever be friends. He meant it. In an exclusive interview with the California Post, Reaves said the two walked past each other in the locker room for a while with nothing to say. He had no idea how to talk to a superstar who had just arrived against his wishes. His first thought was blunt: “What is this guy going to be like?”Doncic had his own struggle. He had led the Mavericks to the Finals and finished third in MVP voting in 2023-24. Then Dallas traded him. He had wanted to spend his whole career there, and he arrived in Los Angeles feeling betrayed. He kept to himself.Doncic told the paper that joining a new team makes it hard for him to speak, so he stuck with a few people he already knew. The shift came at the next training camp, when he and Reaves got close. Teasing followed. Doncic joked that Reaves wanted to be his friend and he was not allowing it. Reaves fired back that he had more dunks.A summer away helped. Doncic’s hurt turned into determination, and he began to see himself as the face of a 17-time champion franchise. Once he fully bought in, Reaves got to see who he really was.Why is the Reaves and Doncic duo the NBA’s top scoring pair?The numbers back up the jokes. Doncic leads the league at 36.0 points per game and adds 8.3 assists and 6.8 rebounds. He shoots 48.4 percent from the field and 39.6 percent from three.The $180 million guard sits 16th in scoring at 24.4 points. Reaves also averages 5.4 assists and 3.4 rebounds while hitting 56.9 percent of his shots and 48.1 percent from deep. He is the more efficient shooter on both marks, which says a lot about how the two share the floor.Together they produce 60.4 points a game. Steph Curry and Yaxel Lendeborg are second at 51.4, nine points back.Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal peaked at a combined 57.5 in 2001-02, during the Lakers’ run of three straight titles. Doncic and Reaves are above that mark. The sample is small this early in the season, but the gap to second place is wide.What do Reaves and Doncic have in common off the court?Once Doncic settled in, the two found they had plenty in common. Reaves said they share a sense of humor and act alike. Both are understated, and both would rather spend time with loved ones than work the LA scene. Golf is how they unwind. In July, Reaves said Doncic sends him videos of his swing and asks how to improve. Reaves tells him he is no coach.The bonding went on all summer. Doncic hosted several teammates in Slovenia for golf, group activities and basketball, and he and Reaves led opposing teams in a rowing contest. Kevon Looney later said time like that lets teammates learn each other’s personalities before camp starts.The ribbing is still going. Late in September, Reaves lost his train of thought in a media session because Doncic was hitting long shots on the practice floor. Reaves said Doncic had made five half-court shots in about 30 seconds, then joked that he hated him.How did the two guards handle last season’s injuries?The bond showed on the court too. LeBron James missed the start of last season with sciatica, and Doncic and Reaves led the Lakers to a 15-4 start. When James sat out three games in March with several ailments, they beat the Pacers, Knicks and Timberwolves and sparked a 15-2 run.April 2 brought bad luck for both. Each got hurt against the Thunder, and the Lakers’ playoff hopes took a hit. Doncic strained a hamstring and missed the whole postseason. Reaves strained an oblique and sat out the first four games of the first-round series against the Rockets.Reaves had a big decision looming as well. He planned to turn down his $14.9 million player option and hit free agency, hoping to stay with the Lakers. In season, he said, the two are around each other about 95 percent of the time, with an off day every week or two. They travel together and know what the other is going through. Having each other around, he said, helped both of them.Does Doncic want to stay with the Lakers long term?Everything points that way. Last summer Doncic told Lakers brass two things mattered to him: a franchise center, and Reaves staying put. James left for the 76ers in July, and the team’s top priority was keeping its centerpiece happy. The Lakers signed Reaves to the four-year, $180 million deal that month. It is the richest contract in NBA history for an undrafted player.Asked if he wants to retire as a Laker, Doncic told the Post, “Hopefully, yeah.”Reaves was just as open in Las Vegas after the signing. He called Doncic one of his best friends on the planet and said they talk almost every day.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.