The Los Angeles Lakers officially threw on their gameday jerseys Monday. Expectations remain high despite LeBron James leaving via free agency. So this team now gets led by the combination of Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic.

Reaves himself is looking at the big picture dynamic of this tandem, plus franchise future. Which he addressed during media day across the league ahead of the 2026-27 season.

“[Doncic is] Someone that I’ll be friends with for as long as I live. I respect what he’s done for basketball, how he carries himself,” Reaves said to ESPN. “And on court he makes my life easy. Our relationship is in a good spot.”

“Someone that I’ll be friends with for as long as I live. I respect what he’s done for basketball, how he carries himself. And on court he makes my life easy. Our relationship is in a good spot.” – Austin on Luka being one of the reasons he stayed with Lakers

-youtube/nbaonespn pic.twitter.com/6dytaRgEuQ

— Luka Updates (@LukaUpdates) September 28, 2026

The last seven words Reaves spilled out should energize Laker fans. That population wants to see a new tandem emerge post James and Doncic.

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But how does Reaves plan to establish himself as a leader moving forward?

“People lead in different ways. I’m not someone that’s gonna sit out here and scream at people,” Reaves said while chatting with Spectrum LA. “I like to talk to people one-on-one, have real conversations that way. People will never feel like I’m trying to embarrass them in front of people.”

So Reaves aims to show a lead-by-example side as he's grown older into his Lakers role. Once again Los Angeles, especially head coach JJ Redick, will expect Reaves to take new steps on the floor. This time by establishing himself as a floor leader outside of his scoring efficiency and knack for executing the pick-and-roll at a high, consistent rate.

And he'll have to do it without James for the first time in his Lakers career.