The Los Angeles Lakers have had a solid all-around NBA offseason. While they have only made a few outside moves to bring in more talent, they were able to lock up Luka Doncic long-term with a three-year, $165 million contract extension.
Bringing in Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart, and Jake LaRavia are also quality moves. However, there are still questions remaining about whether or not the Lakers can be a true contender in the Western Conference.
Looking ahead to the future, there are a lot of upcoming decisions Los Angeles will need to make.
One of those decisions has to do with LeBron James. He is entering the final year of his contract with the Lakers. It’s possible that he could reach free agency next offseason and leave the team.
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Another decision will revolve around rising star guard Austin Reaves.
Reaves is coming off of a career-best season in the 2024-25 campaign. He has one year left on his deal and then a player option he could choose to exercise for a second.
What does the outlook look like for Reaves in Los Angeles? Right now, it seems very likely that he will remain with the Lakers.
According to NBA reporter Jovan Buha, who is one of the best reporters covering the team, Reaves is expected to remain in Los Angeles. He also shared that Reaves wants to remain with the team for the rest of his career.
“I expect it to be with the Lakers. He wants to be a Laker for life,” Buha said.
Buha also reported that Reaves is expected to get $30 million per season on his next deal. He believes that the Lakers will make that work and retain him.
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During the 2024-25 season, Reaves played in 73 games. He averaged 20.2 points per game to go along with 5.8 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.1 steals and shot 46 percent from the floor and 37.7 percent from three-point distance.
At just 27 years old, Reaves has a long career ahead of him. He’s in his prime now and will be able to be a perfect running mate for Doncic for quite some time.
Hopefully, Los Angeles is able to work out a new deal with Reaves. At least for now, Buha certainly sees that being the most likely scenario.
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