If there is one player considered as the king of Dunks from Alley-Oops, it is LeBron James. After the duo of Dwyane Wade and LeBron set the Miami Heat on fire with their partnership, the 4x Champion sought to make similar dunks with the Lakers too. The ongoing season saw several of them, including one that reportedly left Bronny James in awe.

However, there were also a few that the star player missed, causing both him and a teammate to be trolled. The last few days have shown the ‘King’ getting back his groove, and he didn’t shy away from mentioning that teammate’s contribution.

After the win against the Golden State Warriors, LeBron James was interviewed by several media members. During the same, a reporter highlighted Austin Reaves’ quote from over a week ago, in which he discussed a play made during the Lakers-Nets matchup. Both Reaves and LeBron had co-ordinated during the game’s 4 quarter on a move that allowed the young player to throw an alley-oop, and for the 40-year-old to then deposit with through a dunk.

When asked what went behind reaching that decision, LeBron replied “Just reading the game. I’m able to clock things that happen in the first quarter to know that I can always use it in the fourth quarter. So just, always one play ahead. So, something that I saw in the first quarter, that could possibly store for the fourth, and then we got that opportunity, was able to connect.”

Austin Reaves spoke about the Alley-Oop in the aftermath of the Brooklyn Nets matchup. As it turned out, Reaves had recorded similar passes “in about eight straight games”. The 26-year-old had a specific reason for repeating this action, as he revealed “I’ve seen someone trolling me and Bron for, really me, for throwing a lob to LeBron cuz he’s 40, and it was a situation where he got bumped off his back. Couldn’t jump, looked crazy. I will say that but anytime he’s got an opportunity to go get it, I have full trust in him to do that. We’re walking out of the timeout, wasn’t something I was thinking about. He came over to me, and goes ‘look for the lob’ at first. ‘If not spin back and il get it’. And the lob was open.”

That trust and coordination are making up for some good basketball today.

Reaves had a point when he highlighted that LeBron James’ missed dunks weren’t met too positively by critics. Even the dunks LeBron WAS MAKING were met with criticism. During the matchup against the Dallas Mavericks back in early January, LeBron James sent the crowd into a frenzy after slamming a windmill dunk over Dereck Lively II. Even his benched teammates got up from their seats in excitement.

However, Charles Barkley wasn’t too impressed for long. During a ‘NBA on TNT’ segment, he said “It must have been a beautiful play. We showed it 22 times.” When Ernie Johnson asked Barkley if he thought that play was worth it, Barkley responded “Not 22 times. We didn’t have to show it a hundred times.”

Believe it or not, but even LeBron James’ teammates are downplaying his dunks, though we know they are kidding. When speaking about LeBron’s dunk against the Washington Wizards, Davis said “I got hype”. He also added, “it wasn’t one of his best ones. I’ve seen better. But it was a good one”. LeBron, who was lurking in the background, jokingly replied “It be your own friends”.

Nevertheless, LeBron James continues to impress with his alley-oop dunks, no matter what others say. On the assist part, he has the wielder of the 4-year, $53.8 million contract to thank.

The 26-year-old shooting guard/point guard is someone who the veteran depends on to assist in the offensive effort. Especially now, since the Lakers no longer have D’Angelo Russell to go to. Fortunately, Reaves has shown that the team doesn’t need Russell, and LeBron is more than appreciative of that fact.

LeBron James praised Austin Reaves for his performance after the first Nets game since D’Angelo Russell’s Trade

The Brooklyn Nets matchup that had the iconic Alley-Oop and Dunk was memorable for another reason. It marked the first time the Lakers and the Nets faced off after engaging in a trade a few weeks ago. The trade sent D’Angelo Russell and Maxwell Lewis to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton.

Russell had earlier commanded the primary point guard position for the Lakers. However, he was shifted to a bench role over Reaves. Therefore, it was up to Reaves then to show that he could manage things without Russell to guide him. How the Arkansas-born star did so left LeBron James impressed.

“He’s in his process,” said LeBron. “He’s taking the opportunity and he’s running with it. Literally running with it and I love every moment that he’s given an opportunity to go out and showcase his talent with the best players in the world and he’s showing every night that he belongs. It’s just…. it’s a beautiful thing to see.”

Austin Reaves had ended the night by scoring a career-high 38 points, through a 13-23 shooting. Meanwhile, LeBron James scored 29 points. According to reports, LeBron and Reaves went 25-40 from the field, while the rest of the Lakers shot 13-42. Therefore, Reaves certainly played a major role in the Lakers’ close 102-101 win. In light of this game, there probably won’t be another player who LeBron may depend on to pass him those alley-oops.