Austin Reaves is staying in Hollywood.
Confirmed by the California Post, Reaves intends to sign a four-year, $185 million contract to the Lakers — the only franchise he’s ever played for.
After declining his $14.9M player option, Reaves will get the maximum contract extension he was wanting. He will have a player option for the final season.
Reaves’ new contract is the largest in NBA history for an undrafted player.
Reaves is set to make $41.3M in 26-27; $44.6M in 27-28; $47.9M in 28-29; and $51.2M (player option) in 29-30.
One of the most sensational stories in the NBA, Reaves had a four-year college career that began with two seasons at Wichita State. He transferred to Oklahoma and averaged 18.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game as a senior — albeit on an inefficient 30.5% from three.
He went undrafted in 2021 and was set to sign a two-way contract with the Lakers before that was upgraded to a standard contract in September, a month before the NBA season was set to begin.
Los Angeles Lakers star Austin Reaves intends to sign a four-year, $185 million maximum contract to return to the franchise, with a player option for the final season in 2029-30, sources tell ESPN. Reaves declined his $14.9M player option for the new max deal. pic.twitter.com/5T8Ze6v0kF
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 24, 2026
As the Lakers stumbled in Reaves’ rookie season to a 33-49 record, he asserted himself as a part of the rotation after appearing in 61 games (19 starts) and averaging 7.3 points in 23.2 minutes per game.
He continued his rise the following season, playing in 64 games (22 starts) and averaging 13.0 points in 28.8 minutes per game. He also emerged as a dead-eye shooter from deep, knocking down 39.8% of his threes as the Lakers made the Western Conference finals.
The 2023-24 season is when Reaves truly asserted himself as a core part of the Lakers. He played in all 82 games (57 starts) and bumped his scoring average to 15.9 points on 11.5 shots per game, including knocking down 36.7% of his threes.
He continued to get better every season, averaging 20.2 points per game in 2024-25 while starting in all 73 games he played. Reaves also proved his worth as an off-ball guard when he combined with Luka Doncic to give the Lakers one of the more dominant scoring backcourts in the league.
All that hard work culminated in a major breakout season this past year. If not for a few injuries, Reaves played at an All-Star level when he averaged 23.3 points, 5.5 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game on 36% shooting from deep.
With LeBron James missing the early part of the season, Reaves carried the Lakers to a 13-3 record before the calendar flipped to December. He averaged 32.0 points per game in six October games (including a 51-point performance against the Kings) and 26.9 points per game in 10 November games.
Now Reaves has his maximum contract and the Lakers have made it clear that they’re building around Doncic and Reaves as their core moving forward. Whether two offensively talented guards with limited defense is enough to win a title remains to be seen, but the Lakers have made it clear which direction they’re choosing to go in.
