Kevin Garnett Says It Would Be Very Dumb Of Austin Reaves To Leave The Lakers
For the Los Angeles Lakers, Austin Reaves’ rise this season has been both a godsend and a curse. The 24-year-old has been crucial to the team’s success this season, but he has also performed well enough to pose a possible contract extension issue for the Lakers this winter.
Kevin Garnett Says It Would Be Very Dumb Of Austin Reaves To Leave The Lakers
Reaves’ current deal expiring this summer puts LA in serious risk of being priced out of the market, according to sources.
Reaves may decide to depart the Lakers in the offseason in order to sign a more lucrative contract with another team, according to former NBA player Matt Barnes. Kevin Garnett, a member of the Hall of Fame, vehemently disagrees and thinks Reaves made a bad choice.
https://twitter.com/Lakers/status/1658672208896745476?s=20
“Reaves, yeah, Him. Mr. Him. He should get a nice contract. If I’m him, I wouldn’t leave the Lakers,” Garnett said. “Even though he’s gonna get some bigger offers. He’s gonna go get some bread thrown at him.”
Barnes then interjected to add that he’s heard Reaves plans to look into free agency with the hope of landing a higher-paying job elsewhere:
“He already said it’s not about the Lakers,” Barnes stated. “He’s gonna get the money.”
Lakers are concerned Austin Reaves will receive contract offers from other teams worth more than the $50M, 4-year deal they can offer, per @ShamsCharania pic.twitter.com/gZIHJfBtT5
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 16, 2023
KG didn’t like it at all and wasn’t shy about calling Reaves out for what he thought would be a serious mistake:
“Aw, he’s dumb,” Garnett said on Reaves potentially leaving the Lakers. “He’s dumb, bro.”
Following that, the conversation between Garnett and Barnes focused on players like Shawn Marion, Victor Oladipo, and Lance Stephenson who left their respective clubs in search of greater salaries but did not have the same level of success.
AUSTIN REAVES HALF-COURT SHOT AT THE BUZZER 🤯 pic.twitter.com/7RP6R7meaT
— ESPN (@espn) May 13, 2023
The Lakers will run out of money if they can only give him $50 million since other teams are allegedly eager to offer him a 4-year, $80 million contract. Additionally, the disparity of $30 million is too large to be ignored. Reaves might not be a Laker the next season, so that is a distinct possibility.
Kevin Garnett say Austin Reaves would be dumb to leave the Lakers lmao pic.twitter.com/vLQTS9xnGW
— kingtisemedia (@kingtisemedia) May 16, 2023
Rob Pelinka, the general manager of the Lakers, expressed confidence earlier this month when he stated that the team and Reaves both wanted to sign a contract.
KG doesn't bite his tongue…https://t.co/knrjO3sPQD
— MARCA in English 🇺🇸 (@MARCAinENGLISH) May 17, 2023
“There’s a mutual desire,” Pelinka said, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “Those are the type of guys you want in your program – that it’s a team first, it’s sacrifice everything to win a game, competition above individual stats. That’s kind of what the DNA — especially for our young guys — that we wanted to represent. And he’s an example of that.”
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