NBA Exec Predicts Lakers' Austin Reaves Could Earn Up to $180M on Contract in FA

At least one NBA executive believes Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves is playing his way into a major raise while LeBron James remains sidelined by injury.

An anonymous executive recently told ESPN's Tim Bontemps that Reaves could get as much as a four-year, $180 million deal should he leave the Lakers in free agency.

The executive also predicted, however, that a five-year deal with a lower average annual value would be enough to keep Reaves with the Lakers.

"I don't think he's going to quite keep up this pace because LeBron will take away touches, but he is good and the Lakers intend to keep him and he intends to stay, so my guess is it gets done," the executive told Bontemps.

NBA insiders generally see a $30 million average annual salary as the "absolute baseline" for Reaves, according to Bontemps.

Bontemps' report comes two days after Reaves hit a buzzer-beating game-winner to lift his team to a 116-115 Wednesday night victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Reaves was averaging more than 36 minutes per game as James opened the season sidelined by right-side sciatica. He saw his playing time tick up past 39 minutes when Luka Dončić suffered finger and leg injuries that have sidelined him for the Lakers' last three games.

The guard has responded by becoming the first Lakers player since Kobe Bryant to post 25 points in each of the Lakers' first five games of the season.

Reaves is averaging 34.2 points, 10 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game as the Lakers' top offensive option thus far.

Although Dončić could potentially return for Friday's NBA Cup action against the Memphis Grizzles, Reaves is expected to continue seeing an elevated role in JJ Redick's offense given that James is expected to sit out until sometime in November.

That raises the possibility that Reaves could be considered as a trade candidate this winter.

It seems all but assured Reaves will decline his $14.9 million player option for 2026-27 and open himself up to free agency next spring. Opting in to the option would cap his next contract well below his projected range.

The Lakers have already committed to paying Dončić around $50 million for at least the next two seasons. Giving Reaves more than $30 million per year would require the team dedicating approximately half of the 2026-27 salary cap to those two players.

Should the Lakers balk at that price, Reaves could potentially become one of the most highly-anticipated players to hit the trade block by the time the deadline comes around in February.