Austin Reaves, Lakers Reportedly 'Motivated' on New Deal to Despite Rejected Contract
Though Austin Reaves declined a max contract offer from the Los Angeles Lakers this offseason, the two sides reportedly are still interested in figuring out a new deal.
Per ESPN's Dave McMenamin, Reaves and the Lakers are "motivated to find a deal next summer."
Per The Athletic's Dan Woike, Reaves turned down the four-year, $89.2 million offer he was eligible to sign this offseason. That decision was most likely financially motivated since he'll be eligible for a new deal next summer that would pay him a first-year salary of $42.5 million, per ESPN's Bobby Marks.
Reaves is entering the third year of a four-year, $53.8 million contract. He'll make $13.9 million this season and has a $14.9 million option for the 2026-27 season. He would presumably decline that offer and either re-sign with Los Angeles or hit the free agency market.
The Lakers could be in for a few expensive offseasons. Along with Reaves being eligible for a new extension, star Luka Dončić will be eligible for a four-year, $228.6 million extension in August and a five-year, $296 million extension next offseason.
Extending Dončić will be the first priority for Los Angeles, but Reaves has proved himself essential to the roster.
He's coming off the best season of his career, putting up 20.2 points, 5.8 assists and 4.5 boards per game, all three numbers being career highs. He also started all 73 games he played in, marking another career high.
President of basketball operations Rob Pelinka also made it clear the team has no plans of trading Reaves.
"The level of confidence in Austin Reaves, LeBron James and Luka Dončić is at an all-time high still," Pelinka said, per McMenamin. "I think those three guys have incredible promise playing together. And we will collectively do a better job to make sure they're surrounded with the right pieces to have ultimate success."
While Reaves has established himself as a mainstay on the Lakers' roster and an integral part of the offense, he might not be asked to do as much next season since Los Angeles will get its first full year of Dončić.
Still, Reaves, who went undrafted out of Oklahoma in 2021, has already carved out an outstanding career and is now likely on his way to making the kind of money that few undrafted players make.
