The Los Angeles Lakers find themselves in a pivotal offseason. They’ve just been granted one of the best players in the NBA a few short months ago in acquiring Luka Doncic, and now the name of the game should be constructing a better roster around number 77. If they are serious about doing that, they may want to consider trading Austin Reaves. If they keep their current philosophy of retaining Reaves no matter what, they will likely end up regretting it.
Lakers fans know who Austin Reaves is at this point. And let’s be clear, he’s a very good basketball player. Reaves has blossomed from an undrafted player into a truly impactful starting-level player. That’s something not many guys in this league can claim they’ve done. Reaves is a very capable ball-handler who is a dead-eye shooter. But in the context of improving a roster built around Luka Doncic, he’s simply not untouchable.
If we look at the Lakers’ list of usable assets right now that would be very valuable to other teams around the association in a potential trade, we’re basically only talking about their lone future first-round draft pick and Dalton Knecht. Refusing to even consider Reaves in trade dealings clearly restricts LA’s long-term flexibility.
The Lakers could overhaul their roster by trading Reaves
At this point, the Lakers are no longer in the business of trying to maximize the end of LeBron James’ career. He doesn’t have to do as much at this point with Doncic being the new star of the show, and LA is obviously trying to build a contending roster around Luka. What that means is going after floor-spacing, versatility, and strong defense. Unfortunately, Reaves just doesn’t check all of these boxes.
If Rob Pelinka and the rest of the front office executives in the Lakers’ war room are serious about contending with Doncic at the helm, they’ll reconsider making Reaves untouchable. And if you think about it, a trade package involving Knecht, Reaves and that first-round pick could be an enticing option for several squads around the association.
That kind of package could be just what the Lakers need to land an All-Star caliber wing that could even better maximize Luka Doncic’s game. That’s ultimately the kind of swing for the fences that LA has to move in the direction of.
Overall, my argument here isn’t meant to be an anti-Reaves one, but a pro-Luka one. The Lakers already made a bold move in adding a top-five player in basketball four months ago. Now, they can’t allow themselves to abandon that mindset. Success in this league is much more of a continual journey than it is an exact destination.
