The Sports Report: How Austin Reaves became a leader on the Lakers

Howdy, I’m your host, Houston Mitchell. Let’s get right to the news.

From Dan Woike: JJ Redick had validated Austin Reaves all season, publicly and privately praising the Lakers guard as a key player of the roster.

It was a topic in Redick’s first news conference as Lakers coach, a topic in the preseason and, as the season began fittingly against the Minnesota Timberwolves, a topic an entire regular season ago.

“I’ve mentioned this a few times. We’ve talked a ton throughout the offseason. We’ve seen it already in the gym. He’s had a specific sort of pie to choose from, a menu to choose from so far in his career,” Redick said in October. “We’re going to try to give him a little bit more on the menu. Just make him a little more dynamic.”

Yet no piece of praise, no late-game play call, no moment more than any cemented how the Lakers felt about Reaves then their decision in Memphis in late March when Redick gathered LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Reaves together to talk about how the Lakers’ best players could make things work together.

“Just in terms of Austin being included, of course he’s been included,” Redick said.

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CLIPPERS

From Broderick Turner: The joy for the game of basketball remains strong for Kawhi Leonard.

The injuries that have robbed him from playing time have not taken away Leonard’s passion for the game. The inability to play this season because of a right knee injury he had to manage has not lessened Leonard’s happiness for basketball.

He’s 33 and has spent the last five of his 13-year NBA career with the Clippers, and his “love” for the game has only grown.

That is what has motivated Leonard through it all and it’s what he will lean on when the Clippers face the Nuggets in Game 1 of the Western Conference playoffs starting Saturday afternoon in Denver.

“I love the game. I love the game and I have a passion for it still. I love to compete out there. So, that’s pretty much what drives me back,” Leonard said after practice Wednesday. “You know, everything has its ups and downs. You got to go through those in life and you just keep going, really.”

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NBA PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE, RESULTS

All Times Pacific
Play-in round
Wednesday
Miami 109, at Chicago 90 (box score)
loser is eliminated

Dallas 120, at Sacramento 106 (box score)
loser is eliminated

Friday
Miami at Atlanta, 4 p.m., TNT
winner advances to playoffs as East No. 8 seed

Dallas at Memphis, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
winner advances to playoffs as West No. 8 seed

First round
Western Conference

No. 3 Lakers vs. No. 6 Minnesota
Saturday at Lakers, 5:30 p.m., ABC
Tuesday at Lakers, 7 p.m., TNT
Friday, April 25 at Timberwolves, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
Sunday, April 27 at Timberwolves, 12:30 p.m., ABC
Wed., April 30 at Lakers, TBD*
Friday, May 2 at Timberwolves, TBD*
Sunday, May 4 at Lakers, TBD*

No. 4 Denver vs. No. 5 Clippers
Saturday at Nuggets, 12:30 p.m., ESPN
Monday at Nuggets, 7 p.m., TNT
Thursday at Clippers, 7 p.m., NBA TV
Saturday, April 26 at Clippers, 3 p.m., TNT
Tuesday, April 29 at Nuggets, TBD*
Thursday, May 1 at Clippers, TBD*
Saturday, May 3 at Nuggets, TBD*

* if necessary

DODGERS

From Jack Harris: One year and three weeks ago, Bobby Miller was at the peak of his young major league career.

After a promising rookie campaign in 2023, the hard-throwing right-hander had made the Dodgers’ 2024 opening-day rotation. In his season debut, he dominated the St. Louis Cardinals with 11 strikeouts over six scoreless innings. And as a former top prospect in the organization’s pitching-rich farm system, his ascent in the big leagues seemed to be just beginning.

One year and three weeks later, he faces a long climb back.

Now a depth arm in the organization who was called up from triple-A Oklahoma City for a spot start Wednesday, Miller’s first MLB outing of 2025 mirrored the struggles that plagued him over the rest of 2024.

During a woeful three-inning outing, the 26-year-old gave up six runs to the middling Colorado Rockies. Despite striking out seven batters, he was knocked around for a five-spot in the third, punctuated by a hanging curveball Michael Toglia hit for a grand slam.

The Dodgers still won, riding a seven-run first inning to an 8-7 victory that completed a three-game series sweep at Dodger Stadium this week.

But Miller’s implosion was another troubling sign for the Dodgers’ young depth options on the mound.

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Dodgers legend Manny Mota suffers stroke: ‘We hope he can recover all his functions’

Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw throws three scoreless innings in rehab start

Dodgers box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

ANGELS

Corey Seager and Jake Burger each had three hits, and the Texas Rangers beat the Angels 3-1 on Wednesday night.

Seager also drove in two runs in Texas’ seventh consecutive home win. It was Burger’s first multihit game with the Rangers.

Patrick Corbin (1-0) pitched 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball in his first win with his new team. He struck out six and walked one.

Angels right-hander José Soriano (2-2) was tagged for 10 hits in 5 2/3 innings. But he limited the Rangers to three runs — all in the second.

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Angels box score

MLB scores

MLB standings

USC FOOTBALL

From Ryan Kartje: When the transfer portal opened for its spring window in each of the past two years, Lincoln Riley still had important holes to fill on his roster. In 2023, USC picked up a starter on the offensive and defensive lines. In 2024, the Trojans brought in a starting cornerback, starting defensive tackle and kicker to put the finishing touches on its depth chart.

But after two springs scouring the portal for potential starters, the Trojans’ needs aren’t anywhere near as glaring in 2025. And with transfers seeking huge paydays ahead of the impending House settlement, prices have never been higher, either.

So when the portal officially opened for business Wednesday morning, USC had no plans to make major waves. Finally, ahead of Riley’s fourth season, he could afford to sit back and be selective with the spring portal while focusing most of the staff’s attention on growing its top-ranked 2026 class.

“The big thing for us is to just build a roster that doesn’t have to be too reliant on the spring portal,” Riley said. “I certainly feel like there’s less needs on this football team than maybe in some of the years past when we’ve got to this point.”

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DUCKS

Mark Scheifele scored at 1:51 of overtime to give the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Winnipeg Jets a 2-1 victory over the Ducks on Wednesday night in their regular-season finale.

The Jets finished at 56-22-4 to set a franchise record with 116 points.

Connor Hellebuyck made 30 saves for Winnipeg in his 47th victory, the most in franchise history, and the Jets wrapped up the Jennings Trophy for fewest goals against.

Neal Pionk opened the scoring for Winnipeg with 6:11 left in the second period, his screened shot from the point beating Husso.

Troy Terry tied it for Anaheim at 5:45 of the third. He pounced on a rebound and slid the puck into the open side of the net.

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Ducks summary

NHL scores

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1939 — Joe Louis knocks out Jack Roper at 2:20 of the first round in Los Angeles to retain the world heavyweight title.

1947 — Jackie Robinson bunts for his 1st major league hit.

1951 — NY Yankee Mickey Mantle’s 1st game.

1967 — Italian boxer Nino Benvenuti beats American Emile Griffith in a 15-round decision to win world middleweight crown.

1976 — Mike Schmidt hits four consecutive home runs and drives in eight runs as the Philadelphia Phillies overcome a 13-2 deficit to beat the Cubs 18-16 in 10 innings at Chicago’s Wrigley Field.

1976 — Australian tennis star Evonne Goolagong Cawley wins her second WTA Tour Championship at the Los Angeles Sports Arena; beats Chris Evert.

1982 — The Denver Nuggets’ Alex English, Dan Issel and Kiki Vandeweghe each average 20 points a game, the first frontcourt to do so since Bob Pettit, Cliff Hagan and Clyde Lovellette of St. Louis in 1961.

1983 — Nolan Ryan strikes out his 3,500th batter.

1987 — Julius Erving of the Philadelphia 76ers becomes the third player to score 30,000 points in his pro career. Erving scores 38 points to join Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

1994 — Carl Lewis and his Santa Monica Track Club teammates rewrite their world record in the 800-meter relay at the Mt. San Antonio College Relays. Lewis, Mike Marsh, Leroy Burrell and Floyd Heard are timed at 1:18.68, breaking the record of 1:19.11 they had set on April 25, 1992.

1995 — Wayne Gretzky reaches 2,500 career points when he sets up a power-play goal by Rob Blake in the Kings’ 5-2 loss to Calgary.

1997 — The New Jersey Devils’ Martin Brodeur becomes the second NHL goalie to score in the playoffs. Brodeur’s empty net goal caps a three-goal third period that gives the Devils a 5-2 win and a 1-0 lead in a first-round series against Montreal.

1999 — Quarterbacks go 1-2-3 in the NFL Draft as Tim Couch, Donovan McNabb and Akili Smith go to Cleveland, Philadelphia and Cincinnati — the first quarterback trifecta since 1971.

2001 — Barry Bonds becomes the 17th major leaguer to hit 500 home runs. Bonds’ two-run, eighth-inning drive off Terry Adams leads the San Francisco Giants over the Dodgers 3-2.

2006 — Sidney Crosby, scores three assists in Pittsburgh’s 6-1 win over the New York Islanders to become the youngest player in NHL history to score 100 points in a season. The 18-year-old becomes the seventh NHL rookie to reach the 100-point mark.

2010 — Ubaldo Jimenez pitches the first no-hitter in the Colorado Rockies’ 18-year history, dominating the Atlanta Braves in a 4-0 victory.

2011 — Jimmie Johnson wins the Aaron’s 499, edging Clint Bowyer by about a foot. The official margin of 0.002 seconds, ties for the closest finish in NASCAR Sprint Cup history.

2018 — Brayden McNabb scores against his former team in the second period, lifting Vegas to a 1-0 victory over the Kings that makes the Golden Knights the first expansion team in NHL history to sweep its first playoff series. Marc-Andre Fleury turns in another stellar performance, stopping 31 shots as the Knights finish off their fourth one-goal victory of the series.

Compiled by the Associated Press