Lakers Trade Proposal Nets $197.2 Million PG for Austin Reaves, 1st-Round Pick
Although it seems like the Los Angeles Lakers have failed in free agency, the trade market is still up
for business for the next several months.
With D’Angelo Russell and his $18.7 million contract, Los Angeles can construct a trade for a high-
impact player around a pair of first-round selections in 2029 and 2031.
In addition to forward Cam Johnson from Brooklyn and guard Austin Reaves from Los Angeles,
the Cavaliers also acquired forward Rui Hachimura. In the meanwhile, the Nets would get L.A.’s
first-round selection in 2029 along with Russell, shooting guard Jalen Hood-Schifino, and big man
Christian Wood from the Lakers.
Los Angeles has to give up a first-round selection and five players for the pitch, which is a lot for
Garland and LeVert. On closer examination, though, it doesn’t harm Los Angeles as much as one
might believe.
With Reaves as maybe the third-best player on the Lakers roster right now and the extraordinary
value of the four-year, $54 million contract that will see him play until at least 2025–2026 before a
player option on the agreement’s final season, Reaves’ loss is the one real deal breaker. Reaves is
only 26 years old, and Los Angeles would be reluctant to deal with him at such a low cost to the
organization so early in his career.
However, considering Garland’s value as a previous All-Star whose abilities Cleveland reduced two
seasons ago when it acquired Donovan Mitchell in its own deal with the Utah Jazz, Swartz sought
to argue that the juice on this specific trade proposal would be worth the squeezing.
Swartz added, “Garland is the perfect candidate to take over [the Lakers’] point guard duties.”
“Having Garland go to Los Angeles and collaborate with other clients like [Lebron] James and
[Anthony] Davis should make Agent Rich Paul very happy.
provide the Lakers with a second scorer and facilitator to lessen the load on James, who will turn
40 soon. For a club that [the league presently expects] to be $1.2 million over the second apron
luxury tax line, the move would also remove $2.2 million from LA’s books.
Austin Reaves May Be Replaced by Darius Garland in the Lakers’ Starting Lineup
Even though Reaves has been an excellent player for the Lakers these last several seasons, Garland
has demonstrated a far better NBA upside.
According to Basketball Reference, Garland reached career highs in 2021–22, averaging 21.7
points, 8.6 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game, which helped him earn an All-Star
selection. In the two years since, all of those numbers have decreased. But Garland’s output
declined at the same time as Mitchell joined Cleveland’s backcourt. Garland’s downturn was
further compounded by his broken jaw, which kept him out of 25 regular-season games last season.
Throughout his 82 games with Los Angeles last season, Reaves posted career highs of 15.9 points,
5.5 assists, and 4.3 rebounds. However, in his three years in the NBA, he has never scored as much
as Garland or been as much of a facilitator as the Cleveland guard.
Reaves is older than Garland, 24, who is 24 years old, and has a lower career usage percentage
(17.1%) than Reaves. Consequently, Garland will be able to relieve James of some of the ball
handling and playmaking responsibilities during the grind that is the regular season. Additionally,
he shoots more from beyond the 3-point arc than Reaves does (38.4% on 5.8 tries per game vs
36.5% on 3.9 attempts per game).
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