The Los Angeles Lakers are going to do everything in their power to retain Austin Reaves this summer.
Reaves is a restricted free agent this offseason, and the most the Lakers can offer him is four years and $54 million, which at this point is considered to be on the lower end of what he could receive elsewhere.
The 25-year-old can receive offer sheets from other franchises, and the Purple and Gold will have the opportunity to match anything coming Reaves' way. L.A. intends to match any offer sheet Reaves signs up to $100 million, The Athletic's Jovan Buha said on the HoopsHype podcast.
"He's priority No. 1 for the Lakers this offseason. I think they learned from the Alex Caruso situation," Buha said. "Frankly, I think this would be a bigger disaster than Caruso because Reaves is a better player, and he's shown more."
The Lakers failed to re-sign Caruso after the 2020-21 season and he went on to sign with the Chicago Bulls. He helped the Purple and Gold capture an NBA title in 2020, and the franchise's inability to re-sign him is viewed as a massive disappointment.
Reaves flourished in his second season with the Lakers, averaging 13.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 64 games while shooting 52.9 percent from the floor and 39.8 percent from deep.