Austin Reaves has been one of the biggest bright spots for the Los Angeles Lakers in recent years, but he might not be with the team for much longer. Lakers insider Jovan Buha was asked on an episode of Buha's Block if Reaves would still be with the team in three years and he thinks it's more likely that he won't be.
"I would say it's close to 50-50," Buha said. "I would lean probably 55 percent not because he can opt out after next season and I think he's going to have a competitive market.
"We were talking about the Lakers potentially going in a different direction or having some difficult decisions to make if LeBron retires," Buha continued. "So, if LeBron retires all of a sudden, you have to decide what you want to do with AD. How you're going to find that star to play with him?
"And I could see Austin potentially getting a bigger offer to go somewhere else and I can see him getting like a three, 75 something like that deal to go be like the No. 3 somewhere else," Buha stated. "So, I could see him potentially leaving but I would say it's close.
"The Lakers are obviously high on him they have refused to trade him basically and I think they're going to want to keep him," Buha added. "He's a fan favorite. So I would say it's close to 50-50 but given the uncertainty of where the Lakers could be in the summer of 2026, I will leave open the possibility that Austin is potentially getting a bigger contract elsewhere."
Reaves signed a four-year, $53.8 million extension with the Lakers in 2023, which had a $14.9 million player option for the 2026-27 season. That was a great deal for the team but Buha reckons it'll cost them a fair bit more to keep him around long-term.
Reaves has averaged 16.7 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game for the Lakers in 2024-25. The 26-year-old has proven he is an upper-tier role player and would command a lot of interest if and when he hits the market.
The Lakers would ideally like to hold on to Reaves, but it appears it all depends on what LeBron James does. I don't see the 39-year-old James playing beyond next season, so it will be interesting to see how the Lakers tackle this Reaves situation.
As for the present, Los Angeles Times' Dan Woike reports Reaves suffered no structural damage to his back after his nasty fall in the second quarter of the Lakers' 101-93 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday. He left the court not long after the fall but was able to return later and finish the game.
Reaves has now been listed as questionable with a left pelvic contusion in the Lakers' injury report for their next game against the Utah Jazz at Delta Center on Sunday at 8 PM ET. The 11-8 Lakers go into that game on the back of four losses in their last five games but I back them to return to winning ways against a Jazz team that's 14th in the West with a 4-15 record.
