Antonio Reeves scores a career high on his birthday

When Antonio Reeves balls like it’s his birthday, that means he gets buckets. The former Kentucky Wildcat received the gift of extended playing time on his birthday and turned in the best performance of his young professional basketball career.

Reeves came off the bench, and New Orleans head coach Willie Green didn’t bring him out again. The sharpshooter played a team-high 40 minutes and scored a career-high 34 points. No other Pelican scored more than 15 points on Wednesday.

He didn’t just make threes from downtown. Ten of his 14 made buckets were from inside the three-point line. Reeves added three assists and four rebounds in the 100-128 loss to the league-leading Cleveland Cavaliers. Despite the loss, he felt blessed to have such a monumental moment on his birthday during his rookie season.

“It means a lot. It really means everything,” Reeves said after the game. “Coaches have faith in me, players have faith in me and I just went out there and played, gave everything I got 100%. It’s my birthday, I had to show up.”

Reeves got his shot after a rash of injuries, and that’s easy to say. The Pelicans were without CJ McCollum, Brandon Ingram, Jose Alvarado, Herb Jones and Jordan Hawkins. There’s definitely a reason they’re 4-12.

This was just the second time in nine games that Reeves logged double-digit minutes. Although it took some unusual circumstances to get into the rotation, Reeves was ready to make the most of this opportunity.

“Learning to stay ready, it’s a process. I’m a rookie,” he said. “I’m definitely learning from guys like CJ (McCollum), Dejounte (Murray). They tell me all the time to be ready, be focused and be in the gym every day.”

Playing time may decrease as New Orleans gets healthy, but tonight Reeves proved he’s a bucket. There is definitive proof and it will help him hang around the NBA for a long time.

Subscribe to the KSR YouTube channel for press conferences, interviews, original shows, fan features and exclusive content.

Want more coverage of the cats? Sign up for KSR+

KSR has been delivering British sports news in the most ridiculous way for nearly two decades. Now you can get even more coverage of the cats with KSR+. In the midst of a busy summer of recruiting for the basketball and football programs, now is the perfect time to join our online community. Subscribe now for premium articles, in-depth scouting reports, insider knowledge, bonus recruiting and access to KSBoard, our message board with thousands of Kentucky fans around the globe. Come and join the club.