LOS ANGELES — When the Lakers wrapped up their season in May, Lakers president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka made it a point to express that he felt the franchise and Austin Reaves were on the same page despite looming uncertainty ahead.
Read more Archaeologists find huge Viking textile production site in Denmark
Set to enter unrestricted free agency for the first time after declining a $14.9 million player option – as the Lakers built around Luka Dončić as their north star of the franchise – Reaves could have tested the market coming off arguably his best season in the NBA. As widely expected, however, the Lakers didn’t leave Reaves town.
The Lakers intend to sign the 28-year-old guard to a four-year, $185 million maximum contract, a source familiar with the terms of the agreement who was unauthorized to speak publicly confirmed to the Southern California News Group, fending off potential competition for teams with cap space available such as the Detroit Pistons. Reaves will hold a player option for a fifth year for the 2029-30 season.
At $185 million, Reaves’ contract is the richest for a former undrafted free agent in NBA history. Reaves is projected to make $41.3 million in the first year of his contract.
Reaves is comfortably the shining discovery since Pelinka joined the Lakers’ front office in 2017. Going from an undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma to a cemented cornerstone of the team’s plan into the future – regardless of whether LeBron James elects to continue his NBA career into a record 24th season and remain with the Lakers – Reaves stepped into the second scoring role behind Dončić in the 2025-26 season.
“This obviously has been my best season since I’ve been a pro – the numbers and stuff,” Reaves said after the Lakers’ season ended May 11.
Read more All the world’s a robot-staging ground for tech entrepreneurs building ‘physical AI’
Behind Dončić, the NBA’s scoring champion, Reaves averaged a career-high 23.3 points per game in 51 games as he weathered a pair of strains during the regular season. Reaves, along with Dončić, suffered Grade 2 strains on April 2 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Whereas Dončić’s Grade 2 left hamstring strain kept the Slovenian star out for the remainder of the regular season, Reaves beat estimated recovery times from his Grade 2 left oblique strain and rejoined the Lakers in Game 5 of the first round to help secure a series victory in Game 6 against the Houston Rockets. Reaves’ return couldn’t stop the Oklahoma City Thunder from sweeping the Lakers in four games in the second round.
Shelling out their second-largest salary on the team – only behind Dončić – the Lakers’ amount of wiggle room has drastically shrunk. The deal is likely to become official after the team spends the remainder of its cap space.
James, in all likelihood, would have to take a pay cut to return to the Lakers – should that be his choice – unless the Lakers make room via the trade or buyout market.
Read more Federal agents excavate California rescue after 700 animals vanish