The Los Angeles Lakers have a lot of moving parts this offseason. The team is coming off of a great run to the Western Conference Finals that may have ended in ugly fashion but established a baseline of success for the 2023-24 season.
If Los Angeles can have a good offseason and avoid making any drastic mistakes like another Russell Westbrook trade then they have to be considered one of the favorites to win the title in the Western Conference.
Thankfully, it looks like the team’s priorities are in the right place. While anything can happen and the Lake Show can shock us, it does not look like the team is going to go for the splashy move. Instead, as ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski lays out, the team’s biggest priority is retaining its fan-favorite talent.
Adrian Wojnarowski says Lakers will bring back Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves at any cost.
Lakers fans should be celebrating this report from Wojnarowski as there was legitimate concern about whether or not LA would be able or willing to bring back Reaves and Hachimura. Both players were key parts of the team making a run to the Western Conference Finals but that also increased their value on the open market.
The Lakers have the leverage in this situation. Any deal that Hachimura agrees to the Lakers have the ability to match and as long as it is not outrageous (it shouldn’t be) it looks like Hachimura will be back in LA.
Reaves is also a restricted free agent but his situation is a bit tricky because of the Gilbert Arenas Provision. The most the Lakers can over Reaves is a four-year deal of just over $50 million. But another team could pay Reaves more and backload the contract. Based on how he played last year, his true free-agent value is probably around $16-20 million a year.
The Lakers have the ability to match any deal given to Reaves but it could cause complications. Another team that signs him can smooth out his cap hit (because the last two years of his contract would be inflated). The Lakers, though, would have to take the year-by-year cap hit. That would inflate his cap hit over $25 million in years three and four.
That could cause complications for the Lake Show in future years but it does not seem like that is affecting the team’s decision-making at all. It looks like Rob Pelinka and Co. want to certain both players regardless of what it takes and that is outstanding to hear.