Austin Reaves Reveals He Chose to Go Un-Drafted to Lakers for Platform Purposes

It seems to have worked out for him!

We see players turn down more lucrative deals in different spots so they can go somewhere they feel is a better fit. It normally is for them to bet on themselves to have the chance to make even more money down the line. Sometimes it pans out and sometimes it comes back to get them, but you have to respect them for trying.

For Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves, it definitely panned out. Reaves went un-drafted during the 2021 NBA Draft and then signed a two-way contract with the Lakers. 

It has been known that he told teams in the second round not to pick him and that he wanted to head to LA all along.

He now confirmed that and went a little deeper with it. Reaves said that he wanted an opportunity somewhere with a platform and there is nowhere better than the Lakers in the NBA.

Reaves even mentioned that he could have been drafted in the middle of the second round, but he chose not to do so. He understood that going to a bad spot would hurt him long-term and he was right.

For a player this young to do something like this is interesting. He could have made more money right away and every player dreams of having their name called on draft night. But Reaves isn’t every player and he saw the potential of being a Laker in the long-term.

It worked out for him as he is now seen as their third best player and he just signed a four-year contract, worth $56 million. That is an incredible number for an un-drafted player, and he should only get better as well.

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If he outperforms this deal, his next contract will be even higher. Reaves made a smart choice coming to the Lakers and LA is thankful he did just that.

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