2026-27 Team Developments: Trades / Free Agents / News / Rumors / Ideas

Look if Austin lead teams or a perennial All-Star no one would argue. But this is not the case. It's all potential based. When you make more that player like Bronson who lead teams and have a winning post season record expectations climbs higher. At no point should we be hearing Austin should come of the bench for the betterment of the team moving forward.

 

You're taking the words too literally. Obviously regular season matters to get to the playoffs. But it's the same reason people don't put credence on Harden's career because he disappoints in the playoffs. At the end of the day, people expect you to perform in the regular season. What they salivate for is you keeping that same level of play or upping your game in the playoffs.

I never said they weren't paid for regular season performances. I'm saying the Lakers are judged by PLAYOFFS performances, as they have been throughout their history. What's the saying? Title or bust, right?

Those are some random oblique stats you're pushing as if LeBron couldn't reach those numbers. LeBron sacrificed the most out of Luka+Reaves to let those two shine while he took the backseat. Do you seriously believe LeBron couldn't have gotten that random set of stats you mentioned if he wanted...? So I don't see what argument you're trying to make here other than try to check off a checklist.

Those stats you mentioned sound great until you look at the efficiency and shooting splits. Let's ignore that that he turned the ball over 4.5 times per game as well, I guess? Let's just include counting stats?

Actually, it's quite hard to take you serious when you just put up counting stats and ignore shooting splits, Austin's previous playoffs performances, and how you're randomly selecting stat benchmarks as if it proves anything. We're just going to ignore he's not a good playmaker, bad AST-TO ratio, not a good defender, etc.,? Just judging by stats where anyone with a high USG% rate and playing time can reach?

 

Everything in sports is Potential based. Mendoza was Potential Base. AJ is Potential Base. Ohtani was Potential Base. Sure, some had something to back it up....but there's proof that people have ALL THE POTENTIAL and then squander it one way or the other with time. Not everyone can be LeBron and not everyone can live up to Kobe.


.............................OH WAIT.......I am so sorry. I mentioned people in the NFL and MLB and no nothing about sports. My bad guys.

My bad.

You can proceed to ignore this comment.

I'll just start throwing out names and things to sound smart. Tom Brady. Ben Rothlesburger. Michael Jordan. Dr. J. Bill Walton. 3-Peat. Wayne Gretzky. Patrick Kane. John Cena. Chris Jericho. Triple H. Uh......The Mighty Ducks..........

Lee Corso?

Did I pass?

 

I'm not even worried about that. I'm worried about how can we get out of the contract if it's not working out.

And obviously its different to anyone who may be interested in trading for him next few seasons if the contract is seen as good or bad value.

Also not worried if he's earned it or not. That's another non-argument. Contenders don't operated based on who's earned what. They operate in terms of what gets us closest to winning.

 

They don't sign Reaves, at all. He walks. Luka gets mad and asks for a Trade and LeBron decides not to re-sign and go to Miami..........

Are we close to winning now?

 

You might have trouble reading.

Not a single person here, to my knowledge, has ever said don't sign Reaves. In fact, it would be criminal for the Lakers to let Reaves walk considering they have his bird rights and can go over the cap to retain him after all the other moves are completed.

We're judging the VALUE of the contract. We just don't think he's worth THAT much. How is this confusing? If you bought a pair of sneakers for $200 but it was being sold by another store for $100, guess what? You overpaid. But your logic is, "WELL, I HAVE NO SNEAKERS SO I NEEDED ONE. WHAT AM I GOING TO DO? WALK BAREFOOT?"

No, what you should have done is paid less for it. You could have gotten the same sneakers for a less price.

 

AR has improved greatly year after year and after last season you can say he is a top 40 player, prolly higher then that but his salary next year will reportedly be $41.3M which will make him about the 35th highest paid player. Regardless of your opinion on AR, this contract looks to be fair value. Also Luka wanted him back, which is another reason to keep AR and not lose him for nothing.

 

We can't. Because it's a potential based contract. So he has to live up to it or you can just swap one bad contract for another. Similar to Van. Van has little value. So he have to be traded with picks or lakers takes on a bad contract on a player they can use.

 

So the poster, Vince, said: "Contenders don't operated based on who's earned what. They operate in terms of what gets us closest to winning."

I replied.

You are still coming at me like I am happy to the money amount he signed. I have said REPEATEDLY to you, and calmly, that I understand that he was given a lot of money. A LOT. We are on the same page there. I said it again and again that we agree to that.

The only thing I am judging, in your scenario (because I don't know anything), is "Huh, I have $2000 on me right now. All my friends are saying I should get these shoes because it is SUPER IMPORTANT. But it's $200. Sure, I see they are on sale for $100, but what if people think I am trying to be cheap? I want to do what my friends say, because I want to keep them happy. Also, I guess it doesn't matter TOO MUCH SINCE I HAVE $2000 in my pocket at the moment. Sure, I would like to save the money, but again...I have to keep people happy so they stay with me, because they may also just hang out with other people because I am not doing what they ask me to do. So, since I have the money, and can still live and I can fix the situation later, MAYBE BY HAVING TO SELL THEM FOR $100 and losing some cost...but I won't know that till WAY LATER when I may have $4000 in my pocket anyways, then I will do that. But until then, since I am rich and have the money, let me just pander to my friends and hope for the best. If I was wrong, then so be it. I will readjust my thinking and add some new friends to my circle and make better decisions later."

Does that make sense now? Or am I still thinking about a Non-Cap situation? Again, I don't know anything.....so I am likely babbling again just because......which is okay because it is bringing my Austin Reaves Superfandom heart so much joy!

We are SO going to win it all now because Austin in the best.

 

That can be true in some cases but when there's only pair of those shoes in existenance and other people are willing to pay 200 or more for those sneakers then making sure you get them early before anyone has a chance to outbid you is a good way to get your value for those sneakers.

 

List of players getting paid more than Reaves:

Curry
Embiid
Jokic
Davis
Tatum
Giannis
Towns
Brown
Booker
Butler
PG
Adebayo
Fox
Doncic
Kawhi
Mitchell
Cunningham
Mobley
Murray
Young
JJJ
Lavine
Siakam
Haliburton
Edwards
Markkanen
Sabonis
Durant
OG
Harden
Garland
Zion
Mortant
Barnes
Wagner

When you consider age, he's not in the same league as those younger guys or players around his age.

I noticed you guys just create a random list and totally ignore that those other players are in that position because of tenure, accolades (All-NBA), and teams paying them because they're a franchise cornerstone. Just because they're getting paid what they are worth because obviously, you gotta pay guys like Curry, Embiid, Jokic, Davis, Giannis, etc., for what they have meant to the franchise, you can't ignore that they aren't comparable to Reaves situation.

Let's compare him to people around his age and the field is much shorter. He might be better than Franz Wagner out of this list when you remove the old players? Maybe better than Fox but I wonder how much of that is just the Spurs being a bad fit for Fox?

 

He improved or he got the ball more?

He really have not improved that much. I think he gained experience and a better understanding of the game and how to draw fouls get to the paint. But overall is basically the same as his ceiling is limited. So a rise in ppg is equal to more opportunities where as he had to differ more to lebron and Davis.

 

TF are you saying? Holy s***. Peace out. Your friends will think you are cheap because you paid $100 for the same shoe instead of $200? LMFAO... What a nice argument!

 

He'll get punished now for not performing to the max. So let's see. And if it doesn't happen, what will ya'll say then? What will seriously be the narrative here if the Lakers have an untradeable contract in Reaves and have to start packing up assets to trade him for a better fit? Let's think ahead for a moment. I have a feeling a lot of you will be running up the in-game chat and in a year or two, reflecting on how Reaves might have to go.

 

Reaves is highly skilled at changes speeds and using various moves to get to the basket. He has an uncanny knack for scoring in traffic and drawing fouls. He has also a solid, albeit a bit inconistant three-point shooter. But, he's good enough to keep defenses honest. He has also been able to be productive with other high usaage pkayers.

We just hear people saying stuff like Reaves gets hunted on defense. Defense seems to be the issue with him. But at the same time, Jalen Brunsen is sinilar to Austin in some respects. They both get to the cup, shoot, and are deficient on defense. But the Knicks specifically put the right 3 and D players around him and Towns. I guess you could say Luka is the Brunsen and Reaves is the Town on our team. Need to get our Anunoby, Bridges, and Hart. Only, one of those needs to be a rim-protecting big, instead of a third 3 and D player.

So all in all the signing was good. Just need to build the proper on-court support system for the two offensive stars.

 

If a team decides to hand out bad contracts and get stuck in the middle we don't have to follow suit. That's why sometimes before a player is about to get a massive contract but is not that type you cash in. Don't get caught in a situation you need to over pay to keep the player. Everyone saw this from a mile. Lakers were not going to trade Austin unless it's for a star now he is paid like one. Now he has to play like one.

 

Do. you. even. REMOTELY. realize what I am saying?

LUKA AND LEBRON WANT REAVES. You pay for that. You pay for that so you don't have people leaving the team and demanding trades AND THEN you really suck. You pay $200, instead of $100, because the people who control things around you, as much as you do, say "DO THIS OR WE WALK"

And you do it too when it won't matter because you are a Billionaire that can pay all the taxes on all the Hard Cap stuff, 2nd Apron or not, to keep everyone and make everyone happy.

You pay to keep people happy.

Dude, if you are just going to fight me because YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND then stop replying to me. I respect your point of view. I respect your opinion, but you ARE NOT giving me the same courtesy. So, move on. We're done here. I have been straight forward and clear. You don't understand me. That is not my problem. You think you know me better than I know myself, also NOT MY PROBLEM. You don't know me. You don't know what I know, and your opinion sucks but you are entitled to it. Thanks for nothing.

I am glad you are such a HARD CORE LAKER FAN that knows better than the people who run and own the team, but we're done here. I heard you out, and now I am over it all. I will make sure to nominate you and ldawg to run the Lakers for us, since you are both SO WISE and know to make everything work so well. Good luck. I know we will win it all under your tutelage.

 

He was our 2nd best player on the team, which is not all atributed to him having the ball more. When he was out midseason we were playing middling ball on a .500 record, when he came back and Lebron went back to being our 3rd option we were rolling with the best record in the nba in march.