LeBron James Hypes Lakers' Reddish: 'People Were Writing Him Off... I Believe in Him'

LeBron James was impressed with Cam Reddish's recent play following the Los Angeles Lakers' 123-109 win over the Indiana Pacers in the NBA In-Season Tournament Championship.

"People were writing him off," James said, according to Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes. "I'm so happy he got to experience this and perform. I believe in him."

Reddish scored nine points on 4-7 shooting in his 33 minutes of action, although his three blocks were crucial as the Lakers slowed down one of the NBA's most efficient offenses.

Reddish scored a couple of clutch buckets to help the Lakers stave off a run from the Pacers in the fourth quarter. He threw down a transition dunk following a block from Anthony Davis before canning a triple on Los Angeles' next possession to give the team a two-score lead with just over six minutes remaining.

"Getting Cam back has helped us out a lot," James told reporters after the win (6:40 mark). "Not too many people talk about it but one of the biggest shots of tonight's game was [Indiana] making they run, they cut it to three, and Cam hits that big-time three in front of our bench to put it up six. We didn't go back after that. Cam has just been big-time for us and I'm happy to see him thrive under this role with us because he deserves it for sure."

Reddish has spent time with three teams over the previous two seasons, although none of them coveted him in free agency. Instead, he signed a two-year contract worth roughly $4.6 million with Los Angeles in July (via Spotrac).

After bouncing back and forth between the starting lineup and the bench unit, Reddish has entrenched himself with the opening five due to his superb defensive instincts. He's able to use his 7'1" wingspan to disrupt passing lanes and alter shots at the rim.

In 12 starts this season prior to Saturday night's title game, Reddish is averaging 9.2 points and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 45 percent from the field and 39 percent from behind the arc.