Lakers may lose Austin Reaves to surprise Eastern Conference landing spot

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Lakers may lose Austin Reaves to surprise Eastern Conference landing spot originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Los Angeles Lakers would look quite different if Austin Reaves chose to sign a contract elsewhere.

And while the general assumption has been that Reaves won't go anywhere, it's not impossible to see him landing with a new team.

Reaves had a player option for next season, but not near his value, and so that'll be declined, which will make him an unrestricted free agent.

If he wants to leave, Reaves should have plenty of suitors. ESPN's Tim Bontemps singled out one in a new article on Thursday.

"One potential bidder to watch this summer, sources said, is the Brooklyn Nets, who will enter the offseason with more than enough salary cap space to accommodate a max-type player," Bontemps writes.

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One of the keys to this Reaves decision is that Bontemps suggests the Lakers may not actually offer Reaves a max contract -- not that it'd be bad money by any means, but if it isn't what Reaves is hoping for, that could hurt the negotiating vibe a little bit.

"Several scouts and executives predict something in the range of five years, $200 million, but below his five-year max of $239 million, per ESPN's Bobby Marks," Bontemps writes.

For concerned Lakers fans, Bontemps does add that the most likely outcome remains a return to L.A.

"The majority opinion is that Reaves will remain in Los Angeles -- and on a massive raise," Bontemps writes. "But after playing on one of the best value contracts in the league the past few seasons, what number gets that done?"

Because of how NBA contract rules work, the Lakers can offer more to Reaves than any other team (including an additional year).

If Reaves decides he wants his own spotlight away from Luka Doncic, though, Brooklyn may just provide that.

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• CJ McCollum heads for interesting free agency
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