Lakers News: LA, Austin Reaves Both Open To New Contract This Summer
Hot off the best game of his young NBA career last night, it appears that your Los Angeles Lakers are looking to retain backup shooting guard Austin Reaves beyond his first contract with the club, a rarity for this current LA front office.
Last night in a much-needed 111-105 win over the visiting Orlando Magic, Reaves scored a career-most 35 points while shooting 9-of-14 from the field and 16-of-18 from the charity stripe. He also pulled down six rebounds and six assists.
Per Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the most Los Angeles can tender to Reaves will be a four-year deal worth around $51 million. However, Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors notes that, because LA holds Reaves' Early Bird rights, the team would be able to match any contract offered to Reaves by another club should it exceed the amount the Lakers could directly negotiate.
“I mean, I grew up a Lakers fan," Reaves revealed following the game last night, per Buha. "To do it for this organization, especially, is surreal. Sometimes I gotta stop and really think about what I am doing. … All I’m really happy about is the win.”
The 6'5" swingman is signed to a two-year minimum deal with LA, and is thus ineligible to ink a contract extension before he reaches restricted free agency in the 2023 offseason.
The 25-year-old has impressed since signing with LA as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Oklahoma in the summer of 2021. This season, he holds averages of 12.0 points on .518/.380/.854 shooting, 3.0 rebounds, and 2.9 dimes a night, across 27.8 minutes.
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