The Los Angeles Lakers' season came to an end on Monday night, but Lakers star Austin Reaves doesn't want this to be the end of his journey with LeBron James.
Though LeBron's future with the Lakers (and in the NBA) is uncertain as of now, Reaves didn't shy away during postgame interviews after Game 4 from professing his desire for a LeBron return in 2026-27.
"It's been fun [playing with LeBron]," Reaves said, per ESPN's Dave McMenamin. "I hope I can continue to do that."
"It would mean the world to me," Reaves added about a potential LeBron return, per Orange County Register's Benjamin Royer. "I don't know anything different. My rookie year, I had no idea what the hell was going on, and he basically took me under his wing and [has] given me every opportunity."
Austin Reaves clearly wants LeBron James back in LA
If Reaves' comments were a subtle nudge to the Lakers' front office on the LeBron front, so be it. AR has no reason to not want to continue playing with James, who has obviously been there for Reaves as he's transformed from an unknown commodity into a max player.
Speaking of max player, Reaves is due for a big new contract from the Lakers this summer, and all signs point to general manager Rob Pelinka and the Lakers' brass giving AR a max pay day, making him the future of the Lakers alongside Luka Dončić.
While no Lakers player could prevent an inevitable sweep at the hands of the Thunder this year, Pelinka is hoping to build a sustainable contender around Reaves and Dončić moving forward -- a type of team that can compete with OKC and the San Antonio Spurs next postseason. Will LeBron also be part of that fabric?
LeBron James' return to Lakers isn't guaranteed (it's a money thing)
James' return to LA in 2026-27 is a narrative that gained substantial steam in March, when the Lakers went on an awesome run and had finally figured out the correct chemistry between LeBron, Reaves, and Dončić. ESPN's Brian Windhorst has also spoken about how the Lakers are the most logical destination for LeBron from a financial perspective.
But that doesn't mean that anything is guaranteed. You can be sure that LeBron's reps (namely, Rich Paul) will be rolling up their negotiating sleeves this offseason in every conversation with Pelinka, and it's entirely possible that James could end up somewhere else ... or even retire.
It does behoove the Lakers to sort through the LeBron situation early in the offseason, so keep your seatbelts buckled into early and mid-June. It's about to be a wild -- and mega-important -- summer for the Lake Show.
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