Copyright sportskeeda
Austin Reaves found himself at the center of the basketball world’s attention after recording a 51-point near triple-double in the LA Lakers’ 127-120 victory over the Sacramento Kings. Despite the historic display, DeMar DeRozan appeared unimpressed, dismissing Reaves’ career-best outing by pointing out how many free throws he took.During the postgame press conference, DeRozan reacted to Reaves’ 22 free throw attempts before walking out of the interview.“22 free throws for him. Free throws,” DeRozan exclaimed.Many fans didn’t appreciate DeRozan’s unnecessary comments. Lakers supporters, in particular, expressed their frustration on social media.“Ringless bum,” @PurpGolded wrote.𝐏𝐮𝐫𝐩𝑮𝒐𝒍𝒅 🏆 @PurpGoldedLINK@BrickCenter_ Ringless bum“stop fouling sorry ass bum this is why the city of Toronto rejoiced and immediately won after u left 😂😂,” @idcstfumaynee said.“Hey if you're going to full court press maybe dont foul on the inbound back to back,” @LakeShowERA said.“Lmaooo Derozan being a hater cause ARs a whiteboy doing what he could dream of,” @altocalle said.“He shot 25 freethrows in a game before but it’s a problem when Reaves shoots 22? Yeah recency bias is nasty work .. he gotta stop the cap,” @212youngbull said.“Imagine having: DeMar, Lavine, Domas, including Russ and can’t beat a Luka and LeBron-less Lakers😭🤣🤣💀,” @arnold_mtjr said.Austin Reaves played a total of 39:04 minutes, putting up 51 points, 11 rebounds, and nine assists. He completely outclassed DeMar DeRozan, who played even longer but finished with 21 points, six rebounds and three assists.DeRozan's comments come as a surprise because he has had games with just as many or more free-throw attempts previously in his career. He took 22 free throws in the 2021-2022 season and 25 in the 2015-2016 season, yet scored only 46 and 38 points in those games.DeMar DeRozan accuses officials of favoring the LakersDeMar DeRozan was clearly frustrated after the game, pointing out the huge gap in free-throw attempts between the two teams. The Lakers went to the line 46 times, while the Kings only had 18 chances. DeRozan said he had never experienced a contrast like that in his 17-year career, subtly stating that the officials might have been biased towards the Purple & Gold."It's crazy. 46 free throws to 18? And we had to beg for most of those," DeRozan said. "It's deflating. Especially when we're going out there trying to play hard, trying to compete. It seemed like we're getting called for fouls, but on the other end when we try to be aggressive, nothing goes our way. It's kind of deflating at times, especially when you're trying to get it going... 46 free throws is crazy. It's crazy."Unfortunately, DeMar DeRozan can’t really dwell on something he can’t control. The Kings would be better off focusing on the areas they can improve. Compared to their last two outings, they committed more turnovers and struggled with their shooting efficiency.Now, the Kings begin a week-long road trip across four cities, hoping to turn back to their winning ways.
