NBA
LeBron James’ Lakers were threatened for an NBA crack
Published on July 21, 2023 at 8:12 p.m.
Austin Reaves, who emerged as a third option this season alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis, ended all doubts surrounding his future with the Los Angeles Lakers when he signed a four-year, $56 million contract during the Free Angecy. The 25-year-old guard has also revealed that he could have jumped ship to join two NBA franchises.
There was little suspense aroundAustin Reaves and his Free Agency this year. The only real question was how much money it would cost the Lakers to hold back. Even though the talks never progressed to the point of the 24-year-old receiving a concrete offer, that doesn’t mean there haven’t been any talks at all. Proof, Reaves recently appeared on All The Smoke with Matt Barnes et Stephen Jackson and discussed his situation, revealing who some of the competing teams were.
“This is where I wanted to be”
“I really wanted to be in LA all the time. There were a few close situations but, like I said, I wanted to stay with the Lakers, this is my home. This is where I wanted to be. » initially conceded Austin Reaves before specifying where he could have gone: “There was Houston, before Fred VanVleet signed, then San Antonio”. Before the Free Agency, Houston was the only team mentioned when we talked about the potential franchises on the file. Finally, the Rockets instead opted for VanVleetoffering him the biggest contract in NBA history for an undrafted player.
Spurs did not dare
The journalist at ESPN, Zach Lowefor his part explained that the Spurs hesitated to offer a contract to Austin Reaves, which could have reached up to 100 million dollars over four years, before finally trying nothing. Indeed, the Lakers had warned their competitors that they would align themselves no matter what with the offers issued for their 25-year-old back. The Texans may have figured they couldn’t lure Reaves and therefore abandoned a lead that was going to yield nothing. And inevitably, faced with this lack of competition, the prices did not explode and the Californians were able to keep Austin Reaves with a contract of “only” 14 million per season, thus achieving a very good operation.
2023-07-21 18:12:00
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