Austin Reaves Discussion: Foundation Piece Or Trade Piece?

i have mild optimism for next year because i think he wins the starting sg role in camp, which immediately makes us better to start games. that and having stan get 25mpg as backup 3/4 (or even starting 4 if we can't get a center) should be better than what we've tried to do this year.

 

Better effin’ not be the next scouting staff’s GEM lost to “LeBron’s window”

 

this is why the non-moves at the deadline were reassuring. sucks that the russ trade slammed the door on our title hopes, but it's great that it slammed the door on lebron as general manager.

i promise teams were trying to get THT and reaves for some mediocre vet whose name fans recognize.

 

I have no doubt that Reaves WILL be a perennial starter in this league. He will be widely viewed across the league as a great to elite “3 and D” guy. He’ll earn a contract in the 10 - 20 million range.

I just hope it’s with us.

Although… I have to wonder what his value is by the off-season. If he continues to put up performances like last night in high profile matchups against great teams, doing a great job at keeping elite players like Steph/Klay in check, other teams executives might already start recognizing how good he is.

Just throwing this out there, hypothetically what do you do if Portland calls us this summer and says they’ll trade us Dame for Russ… IF we throw in Reaves as well?

I think it’s a pipe dream anyways, but I’d still have to think about it.

 

i'd have to know dame is healthy, but i'd consider it. having a pg who's that level of threat on offense would change a lot for us. it's part of why i would have traded russ for randle/kemba--even old kemba is someone teams have to respect as a shooter all over the floor. since we already don't play any defense, why not be a bigger threat to outscore you?

anyway, yes, reaves's price will be pretty high if he just translates his current production/value in a starter's role. but like THT, we have his early bird rights, which will make it very hard for teams to get him away from us.

 

If Reaves could develop into an offensive player like that Huerter kid with the Hawks, we would have pure gold.

 

he's not quite as big or fast as heurter, but he's already a better playmaker, imo. i don't think he'll be able to shoot like heurter can or fly off screens for threes like that, either. very different players, imo. both good.

 

Well, we saw Rob let Caruso walk over a couple of million dollars (I believe Rob said we offered 7.5 per) in favor of THT so.....so who knows? This team has had a notoriously hard time holding to talent and letting a lot of it slip away. We lost Caruso, KCP, Kuzma and Montrell all in the last year. 3 of which were big role players in the champ run. We lost 3 champs for 1 chump.

 

yeah, feel like they've already learned from that one.

 

The Lakers have the 4th highest payroll in the NBA. Caruso was going to be a 35 million dollar cap hit. That's not chump change. It's not like he was going to save the season any, he's not even playing. The gripe could be keeping Talen over Alex, but not keeping both, wasn't being "cheap".

 

It isn't nothing personal, LJ.

It's strictly business.

We have to pay the Klutch personnel.

They take precedence.

 

He’s not even playing? What the hell does that mean for your Caruso’s not all that valuable stance? You know damn well why he’s not playing.

 

Once Reaves develops a consistent three point shot, he’s gonna stick in this league for a long time.

 

Yeah I know...Because he's injured. Like I said 35 million is no small amount of coin. It not like having him changes anything this season. I haven't changed my opinion on the subject.

 

Could have but that didn't happen, it's unfair to say Jeannie is cheap, just because she didn't shell out another 35 million dollars. Besides Russ was traded for matching salaries, we were already over the salary cap as it was.