The Los Angeles Lakers agreed to a four-year max contract with Austin Reaves to make sure Luka Doncic got his wish. The Athletic’s Dan Woike reported that Luka made his desire to keep AR clear (subscription required) to the organization. With other teams circling the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent, the Lakers quickly stepped in and got a deal done. Sadly, a max contract for Reaves is a bit too much in the second apron era.
AR will make $41.3 million next season, and he has a $51.2 million player option in 2029-30. The Lakers got no discount ahead of a crucial summer. They need to add pieces and build around Luka. The purple and gold locked in his co-star, but that is not enough to make Los Angeles a serious title contender moving forward.
The Lakers don’t lose their cap flexibility. They will use Reaves’ lower cap hold to make moves before circling back to finalize his new contract. Los Angeles has room to add. They are hard-capped at the second apron after trading cash on draft night. Now, it is all about maximizing every dollar.
Luka Doncic gets his wish to have Austin Reaves back with the Lakers
Fans shouldn’t be surprised. Doncic has a say over the team’s roster decisions. He believes in his pairing with Reaves. They have formed a close relationship, and the Lakers had an 11.6 net rating when the duo shared the floor last season. That is an elite number, and should only improve as LA builds the right roster around the pairing.
Doncic and Reaves are set to make $90.8 million combined next season, which leaves the organization $118.2 million to build out the rest of the roster and stay under the first tax apron. Bringing back LeBron James at $30 million would give them just $88.2 million for 12 players. Things get sticky in a hurry under the NBA’s latest CBA.
Rob Pelinka made two strong moves to start this offseason. The Lakers moved up to draft Cameron Carr, who feels like an ideal fit around Luka. Now, they secured his co-star. Pelinka must find a center capable of protecting the rim and being a lob threat. The Lakers also need to upgrade their perimeter defense and keep shooting around number 77.
LA has the two most difficult pieces of the title-contending puzzle locked in. Luka is an alpha in the middle of his prime. Reaves is a strong co-star who keeps improving. The Lakers have a star duo. Now the pressure is on to find the right role players to make them a championship roster.
The Los Angeles Lakers granted Luka Doncic’s wish to keep Austin Reaves, but it took every cent of a maximum contract to make it happen. Fans can point to numerous cases of a player outside the top ten’s max deal going south. Reaves certainly isn’t in that stratosphere, and this move could be regrettable. The Lakers have to hope he continues to improve. If not, giving Luka what he wanted could become a problem for Los Angeles.
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