The Lakers have signed Austin Reeves to a significant contract extension and reportedly pulled out all the stops to retain their star guard. For a report by Shams Charania on Wednesday’s edition of NBA Today, the Lakers engaged in flattery as they offered Reeves the richest deal for an undrafted player in the history of the NBA.
“Shortly after the NBA Finals, Lakers ownership and front office met with Austin Reeves and his agents at the team’s practice facility in Los Angeles,” Shams reported. “It was in a private event room and they had all the personal touches for Austin Reeves in this meeting. They played his favorite country music. They had personalized AR-initialed pillows for Austin Reeves and everyone else that was in attendance. That’s all nice though right? It’s nice to get AR-initialed pillows for yourself but it all comes down to the money.”
Shams then broke down the details of the four-year $185 million max contract and indicated that there were other teams that were on the market for Reeves
“I’m told over the last 24-48 hours, the Lakers came to the understanding that Austin Reeves had multiple max contracts available to him in free agency if he hit the market on July 1. One of those teams, the Detroit Pistons, were coming aggressively for him so that’s why today the Lakers stepped up to give him this deal, four years $185 million. He becomes the richest player ever to sign a contract at this level for an undrafted player in NBA history.”
Reeves has emerged as a key player in the Lakers’ rotation. He averaged 23.3 points per game, alongside 5.5 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.1 steals on 49% shooting from the field and 36% from three. He was a key piece in the Lakers’ success early in the season when both LeBron James and Luka Doncic were sidelined with injury. He formed a potent offensive tandem with Doncic to power the team to a 53-29 record, good for fourth seed in the 2026 NBA playoffs
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