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Both Austin Reaves and the Lakers have always stated their desire to continue their relationship that started when he was an undrafted prospect five years ago.

They will.

Reaves intends to re-sign with the Lakers for a maximum deal of four years and $185 million, people not authorized to speak on the matter confirmed to The Times on Wednesday.

Reaves opted out of his deal that was to pay him $14.8 million next season and would have become one of the top free agents on the market.

Instead, he will sign the richest contract in NBA history for an undrafted player. The deal also includes a player option for the final season in 2029-30.

Reaves’ representatives and the Lakers began working together on a deal in recent days when teams were able to negotiate with their own free agents at the conclusion of the NBA Finals.

Reaves, 28, will earn about $46 million per season, starting with making $41.3 million in the first year.

Read more:Lakers swap picks with Knicks, select wing Cameron Carr

After the Lakers lost in the second round of the playoffs to Oklahoma City, Reaves had this to say when asked about his future and returning to the Lakers.

“I’ve been around for five years and y’all I would say, but I don’t think about [it] much,” Reaves said. “I take life day by day and I’m just blessed to have an opportunity to play for this organization, play a kid’s game. I make good money. But like I said, I don’t think about what I’m really going to do in the future, just day by day.”

The Lakers, on the other hand, made it clear that they wanted Reaves back.

The Lakers were aware that several teams, including Brooklyn and Detroit, had expressed interest in Reaves, and L.A. didn’t want to let him get away, making sure they didn’t by agreeing to a deal to keep him.

During his exit interview with the media last month, Lakers president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka spoke about Reaves.

“He started his journey here as a Laker and has made it very clear to us that he wants his journey to continue as a Laker,” Pelinka said. “And we feel the same way. We want his odyssey to continue to unfold in the purple and gold. As you know, there’s rules and timing to all of that but I think both sides have made it abundantly clear that we want to work something out where he continues his prolific career here.”

Reaves averaged career highs in points (23.3) and rebounds (4.7) last season, and 5.5 assists.

But he appeared in a career-low 51 games, a calf and oblique injuries keeping him out of games.

He missed the last five regular-season games with the oblique injury suffered on April 2 at Oklahoma City and the first four first-round playoff games against the Rockets. But he worked hard to return in the last two postseason games against the Rockets and the four against the Thunder.

In those six playoff games, Reaves averaged 20.0 points, 5.8 assists and 4.0 rebounds and shot 40.7% from the field, 25.7% from three-point range.

“That’s the beautiful thing about basketball is there’s always opportunities and areas that you can continue to grow,” Reaves said during his exit interview. “You’re never going to be complete in the full game. So, I’ll take some time off, get back in the gym and continue to get better.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Austin Reaves is officially coming back to the Lakers.

On Wednesday, Shams Charania of ESPN reported that Reaves agreed to a four-year, $185 million max contract with a player option in 2029-30. Other teams couldn’t have offered him more than a four-year, $177.4 million deal, but the Lakers could have given him a five-year, $239.25 million deal by tacking on a fifth year worth nearly $54.5 million.

The best news of all? Reaves’ new contract has zero bearing on the Lakers’ potential spending power this offseason.

Reaves has a $20.9 million cap hold, roughly $20.3 million less than he’s set to earn in 2026-27 under his new contract. His $41.25 million max salary won’t go on their books until he officially signs that deal, though.

As we’ve been telegraphing for nearly 18 months, the Lakers will first spend however much salary cap space they decide to manufacture this offseason. Once they’re out of cap room, they can officially re-sign Reaves via his Bird rights, even though that will push them well over the cap.

The Sixers pulled off this same strategy two years ago with Tyrese Maxey, which is what enabled them to sign Paul George. The Lakers won’t have quite as much cap space this summer as the Sixers did heading into the 2024 offseason, but they could still have $50-plus million to spend.

However, there’s a reason why “rival teams look at the Lakers as having ‘phantom’ cap space,” according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. Getting up to that $50 million figure would require renouncing their rights and/or parting ways with LeBron James, Rui Hachimura, Luke Kennard and the rest of their free agents.

What can the Lakers do this offseason?

As of now, the Lakers technically do not have any cap space. LeBron’s cap hold alone ($57.75 million) wipes out all of their potential spending power.

In other words, order of operations will be critical for the Lakers once free agency begins.

Before they officially do anything else, the Lakers must decide on LeBron’s future. If they re-sign him, his new salary would replace that $57.75 million cap hold, which could open up some spending power. If they renounce their rights to him or he signs elsewhere, that cap hold will be wiped off their books entirely.

To a lesser extent, the same holds true for Hachimura ($27.4 million cap hold), Maxi Kleber ($20.9 million cap hold), Kennard ($13.2 million cap hold) and Jaxson Hayes ($6.6 million cap hold). The Lakers will have to make decisions on Hachimura, Kleber and Kennard before they’ll officially have any cap space.

If the Lakers plan to bring back LeBron, Hachimura, Kennard, Kleber and/or Hayes, there’s a non-zero chance that they won’t have cap space at all this summer. In that case, they’d likely choose to operate as an over-the-cap team, which would give them access to the $15 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception as long as they stayed below the first apron. If they go the cap-space route, they’ll have the $9.4 room MLE instead.

That’s where Reaves’ contract could impact L.A. the most for now.

How does Reaves’ contract impact the Lakers?

While Reaves won’t cut into the Lakers’ potential free-agency plans, he’s one piece of a much larger cap-space puzzle. Knowing what they’ll be paying him could help give the Lakers clarity about how much they’d be willing to spend on their other free agents.

If the Lakers go over the first apron, they’d lose access to the non-taxpayer MLE and would only have the $6.1 million taxpayer MLE. If they went over the second apron, they wouldn’t have a mid-level exception at all.

The Lakers are now hard-capped at the second apron after sending cash to the New York Knicks in their trade-up for Cameron Carr. That’s projected to land at $222 million, so that’s the upper limit of the Lakers’ spending power this offseason.

While the second apron might not sound like a real concern given their ability to manufacture $50-plus million in cap space, money could add up quickly for them. For example, if they re-signed LeBron to a deal starting at $35 million and re-signed Hachimura to a deal starting at $20 million, they could be less than $20 million away from the first apron and roughly $32.5 million away from the second apron.

There are too many moving parts right now to accurately project what the Lakers’ cap sheet might look like once the dust settles on free agency. They might be able to stay below the first apron and spend the full non-taxpayer MLE, or they might get close enough to the second apron that they won’t be able to spend their MLE at all. It’s rare for teams to have that much potential variance heading into free agency, but that’s what happens when this many key players become free agents at once.

So, while Reaves’ contract won’t affect the Lakers’ potential cap space this offseason, his new salary could affect which mid-level exception they have to spend.

Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM. All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.

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This NBA Draft has been lauded as one of the deepest in recent years.

Despite having a pick late in the first round, the Lakers still traded up to No. 24 and drafted Cameron Carr, providing the team with an explosive guard who immediately improves this team’s athleticism.

Considering where they were drafting, the Lakers did the best they could, picking a player with good defensive instincts and a certified 3-point shooter.

Here’s a look at the grades from a number of outlets for the selection.

J. Kyle Mann, The Ringer

Grade: A

Carr was reportedly projected to go as high as 14, and the lowest I’d heard he could slide to was 19. But this could end up being a blessing in disguise. Luka streamlines the games of the players around him, and he’ll give Carr more catch-and-shoot 3-point opportunities than he can handle. The Lakers need perimeter depth—they’re currently composed mostly of guards and beefier wings like Rui Hachimura, who’s an unrestricted free agent—so trading up a spot to grab a player they didn’t expect to be available was a nice piece of business.

John Hollinger, The Athletic

Grade: B+

I had Carr rated five spots higher than this and like his fit in L.A. as an athletic shot-maker who can do more than just make jump shots. I think Carr has a chance to be the player the Lakers thought they were getting when they picked Dalton Knecht. The Lakers paid to trade up and make sure they got their guy. 

Bryan Kalbrosky, USA Today

Grade: A

Cameron Carr was surprisingly still available this late in the first round despite having arguably the best performance of anyone at the 2026 NBA Draft Combine. Arguably the best athlete of anyone, especially among prospects in this range, Carr also provides value as someone who can stretch the floor as a shooter as well. With a wingspan nearly 7-foot-1, he should make a defensive impact breaking up passing lanes and blocking shots as well.

Zach Buckley, Bleacher Report

Grade: A

The Lakers were routinely linked to centers throughout mock draft season, which made sense in that the position was clearly a big need. There probably wasn’t enough said about the other needs on this team, though, like defensive playmaking and athleticism on the perimeter, which Cameron Carr will provide in droves.

Carr crushed it during the predraft process, which should’ve surprised no one. He has incredible length (a near 7’1″ wingspan jutting out of his 6’4.5″ frame), anti-gravity hops and an incendiary three-ball. His game is easy on the eyes, even if there are some questions about his creation chops.

It is entirely easy to envision him in a three-and-D role, although he needs to get stronger and more comfortable playing with physicality to really thrive in it. It also takes a good amount of optimism to picture him growing beyond that label, since his handle lacks wiggle, and his playmaking lacks vision.

Carr could have gone 10 picks earlier than this, and it wouldn’t have raised eyebrows (or received a harsh grade). This is awesome value at this spot in the draft, and Carr’s play-finishing should shine alongside a shot-creator like Luka Dončić.

Ricky O’Donnell, SB Nation

Grade: B

Carr is knockdown three-point shooter on the wing with a 7’1 wingspan and the hops to dunk the ball and block shots at the rim. What’s not to like? Well, I worry he doesn’t have much utility in terms of driving and passing, and I think his defensive projection is a little overrated because he struggles to contain the ball. This is still a pretty good value play, and his shooting will definitely fit well next to Luka Doncic.

Kevin O’Connor, Yahoo Sports

Grade: A-

Luka Dončić said in a recent interview that he’d ideally like to be paired with shooters that can space the floor so he’s not doubled as often. Well, he got his wish here with Carr after the Lakers traded up to the No. 24 pick with the Knicks. You could have watched every Tennessee game for two years and genuinely not known that Carr existed. Then he transferred to Baylor, and led the team in scoring, shot nearly 40% from 3 on high volume, and looked like a 3-and-D role player who also has blossoming skills off the dribble. With NBA genes in his blood, as the son of former player Chris Carr, Cameron has the skills to make it in the NBA. But at 184 pounds with not a ton of games under his belt, he’s going to get introduced to the NBA’s physicality in a way college basketball never did. The Lakers could use his shooting and creation, though, as another wing on the roster.

Adam Finkelstein, CBS Sports

Grade: B+

Carr definitely slipped a bit, but his physical traits and shotmaking is hard to find at this point in the draft. Carr followed up on his breakout season at Baylor with a terrific showing at the combine. Has a rare overlap of bouncy athleticism, extreme length (7-foot-plus wingspan), and shot-making, which is the basis for high long-term upside projections. Carr is a true three-level threat who can be a tough shot-maker from the perimeter, a constant threat to rise and fire in the mid-range area, and a straight-line slashing threat.

Carr is one of the few perimeter prospects in this draft who can combine length, athleticism, and shot-making. He still has some maturing to do, but Carr gives the Lakers physical tools and shooting range to match. He lacks physical strength and may not have an NBA-ready frame, which could be initially problematic on both ends of the floor. 

Stephen Noh, The Sporting Tribune

Grade: A–

The Lakers traded up one pick in order to select Carr, who slid from his projected range in the mid-to-late teens. This is a nice fit for him. He’s not great at creating his own shot, but he won’t need to while playing next to Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. What he can do is jump out of the gym and shoot 3’s. He’s the perfect play finisher to put next to those two. And he has one of the best gunners in NBA history in JJ Redick to draw up plays for him.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.

The Giannis Antetokounmpo trade saga was the narrative of the summer. Rumors swirled about whether or not the Milwaukee Bucks would prefer the four quarters on the dollar trade from the Miami Heat or the star-for-star swap from the Boston Celtics. Once the Bucks decided to accept Miami’s trade offer over Boston’s for Giannis, the narrative shifted from one star to another.

Now, Jaylen Brown has shifted into the forefront as one of the league’s best players looking for a change of scenery. There have been teams linked to Brown even when it appeared the Bucks might move Brown to a third team if they received him in a Giannis return.

One of the teams that could be in the mix if they wanted to be is the Cleveland Cavaliers. In a segment on NBC Sports Boston, SI’s Chris Mannix mentioned that there is a name on the Cavs roster that is connected to a potential return for Brown.

“The name and team that came back to me is Evan Mobley and the Cleveland Cavaliers.” Mannix went on to describe how Mobley is the archetype of a player that Boston is currently interested in. There would also be some tough money matching that would need to be accomplished as the Cavaliers are currently in the second apron.

Then, once this news started swirling, it required some insight from Cleveland’s best Brian Windhorst. On his regularly scheduled call with ESPN Cleveland, Windy poured some water on this rumor: “I don’t think they are looking to move him (Mobley) right now.”

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A Mobley for Brown trade could be a disaster on multiple fronts. In terms of talent acquisition, it is a real argument that Brown is more talented than Mobley. Obviously, they are two different archetypes of players, so it’s an apples-to-oranges situation. However, the basketball fit is more of a problem when it comes to Brown. Hypothetically, in a world where the Cavaliers make a version of this deal, the nucleus becomes James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, and Brown vying for possessions and shot attempts.

Brown is not a connective tissue kind of player; I would argue that the way he impacts offenses is similar to the way Mitchell does. We already saw what Mitchell looked like with Darius Garland, someone who also plays their best when they are on ball all the time, and there was strife there. Harden makes more sense next to Mitchell because Harden’s passing, even at this late stage of his career, is a step above the rest.

While Harden can make Mitchell’s shot portfolio easier, Brown would mostly be on ball to generate his own looks. The quotes coming from Brown in recent months about how this is his favorite season he has ever had would also shine a light on the fact that he wants to be the guy on his next team. Mitchell is the guy in Cleveland. Harden knew Mitchell was the guy in Cleveland, which is what made the pairing work offensively.

The situation in Cleveland could become toxic quickly and could become a “your turn, my turn” kind of offense. Kenny Atkinson’s preferred system of ball and player movement doesn’t exactly fit with what a trio of Harden, Mitchell, and Brown would likely turn into.

If the Cavaliers were serious about Brown, it would actually balance the roster more, as well as the offense, to look at a deal around Mitchell for Brown. Although that doesn’t seem like the direction the team is looking for now. At this moment, it seems like the core four group will be back together in some form.

Obviously, things can change; however, for now, it appears that even though the Cavaliers have attractive players, they are equally as attractive to Cleveland.