Lakers insider: 55 percent chance Austin Reaves won’t be with L.A. 3 years from now

Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves has spent the entirety of his NBA career to this point in Los Angeles, and he’s steadily improved as a scorer with each passing season in the league.

So far in the 2024-25 campaign, he’s averaging a career-high 17.1 points per game while shooting 44.8 percent from the floor and 37.1 percent from 3-point range. Plus, Reaves brings more to the table on that end of the floor outside of his knack for putting the ball through the hoop, as he’s averaging 4.9 assists per contest as well.

Reaves’ continued improvement has made him an important piece for the Lakers in terms of both the present and the future. But in the eyes of The Athletic’s Jovan Buha, there’s a greater than 50 percent chance that Reaves will be playing for another NBA team within a few years.

“I would say it’s close to 50-50,” Buha said when asked if Reaves will still be with the Lakers in three years. “I would lean probably 55 percent (he does) not (stay) because he can opt out after next season and I think he’s going to have a competitive market.”

Buha also implied that Reaves’ future in Los Angeles could hinge on when Lakers superstar LeBron James decides to call it quits on his NBA career. James is approaching his 40th birthday and is currently in his 22nd season in the league.

“(Reave’s future is) depending on…the Lakers potentially going in a different direction or having some difficult decisions to make if LeBron retires,” Buha said. “So if LeBron retires all of a sudden, you have to decide what you want to do with A.D. (Anthony Davis), how you’re going to find that star to play with him.”

Reaves will be under contract with the Lakers through the 2025-26 campaign. He has a player option on his deal for the 2026-27 season, but fans of the storied franchise should expect that he will decline that option.

So far in his fourth season in the NBA, Reaves has probably been the Lakers’ third-best player behind only James and Davis. He’s averaging the third-most points per game and is tied for the second-most assists per contest of anyone on the squad while also ranking first in 3s made per game.

The 26-year-old is also doing all that for a Lakers team that has experienced a solid amount of success to this point. Los Angeles is four wins above the .500 mark at 11-7 and could pick up its second straight victory with a win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in an NBA Cup contest on Friday night.

A win for the Lakers on Friday would also have implications in the standings, considering the Thunder sit atop the West at the moment with a record of 14-4.