Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura: A Must Stay for the Lakers

Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura: A Must Stay for the Lakers

Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura are fan favorites to Laker nation and will continue to grow as the Los Angeles Lakers are determined to sign both for multi-year contracts.

After the Lakers traded Russell Westbrook, fans thought it was the end of their pursuit of the playoffs, but the role players like Reaves and Hachimura stepped up and changed the course. Both players contribute many factors to the Lakers late season success.

Reaves is an effective shooter and dishes out assists to D’Angelo Russell, Lebron James, and Anthony Davis. Hachimura, however, plays more physical basketball because of his strength, which tends to set up Davis for block shots and rebounds defensively. Acquiring Reaves as an undrafted free agent and Hachimura for Kendrick Nunn, plus a couple of draft picks, sounds like an absolute steal.

Both are restricted free agents for this upcoming free agency class, and the Lakers are eager to sign them sooner rather than later. The Lakers can also match any offer sheet for both players as well.

“There’s no way they’re letting him walk,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said, via USA Today Sports. “They absolutely had egg dripping from their chin on letting Alex Caruso walk, and Reaves, let’s just be honest, he’s their third-best player.”

As Reaves and Hachimura made $1.6 and $6.3 million in 2022-23, respectively, the Lakers need to offer a substantial increase to keep both Reaves and Hachimura, whether it’s their own offer

Both players are still young and have potential. The two players are critical to the future as Davis has two seasons left before free agency, and James may leave for another team to have the opportunity to share the floor with his son Bronny James.

If the Lakers sign both of these players to multi-year deals and decide to keep them, the future does look bright despite not owning a few future draft picks. 

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