After months of infighting among Los Angeles Lakers fans on the subject of how much Austin Reaves worth, Rob Pelinka and the front office had no such problems in determining they should pay up for their star. Reaves got his money, and the max deal is a pretty hefty one.
Shams Charania reported on X: "Lakers star Austin Reaves intends to sign a four-year, $185 million maximum contract to return to the franchise, with a player option for the final season in 2029-30, sources tell ESPN. Reaves declined his $14.9M player option for the new max deal."
Let me save you the crunching of numbers at home, that is an annual average of $46.25 million. The first max contract of Reaves' career comes in a notch higher than what some may have projected. The Brooklyn Nets were previously reported to be offering four years and $178.5 million. That would have been a touch cheaper at around $44.6 million on average.
Some, including the man behind this screen, optimistically believed the Lakers could come in at a slightly smaller number given the infinitely better winning situation in Los Angeles. The price for Reaves is ultimately a touch high here, but realistically, the Lakers had little choice in the matter.
Lakers could not afford to have Austin Reaves walk for nothing
As a pending unrestricted free agent, Reaves could have taken his ball and ran. There were clearly rival teams who were willing to give him a max contract. That gave the Lakers limited rebuttals in what the contract figure should look like for their star guard.
Reaves' rise to stardom and close relationship with Luka Doncic made him a must keep. Replacing him and everything he offers the franchise would have been an exhausting task, to put it mildly.
Even if the figure comes in at a few million higher than desirable on the annual average, the Lakers ultimately understand it was necessary. Fans should come around on that too.
The good news for the Lakers is the message ESPN's Bobby Marks added to Charania's initial report. It points out the careful language used by Shams in saying Reaves 'intends to sign.'
Marks said the Lakers guard would not be affecting the offseason cap flexibility the Lakers are going to have. Reaves is expected to sign after the Lakers exhaust their cap room to fill out the roster in Los Angeles. It will only be the $20.9 million cap hold working against them in the short-term.
That offers a great silver lining to an otherwise expensive day in Laker land. Reaves was always penciled in as the second star beside Doncic for the immediate future. This new deal secures his future in Los Angeles, even if the cost is a touch steep.
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