3 reasons why LA Lakers should not re-sign Austin Reaves to a bumper contract

The LA Lakers are stuck in a tough spot with Austin Reaves. He's been a fan favorite and one of their best players for years now, going from an undrafted free agent on a two-way deal to a starter on a playoff-caliber team.

Nevertheless, that doesn't mean that they need to spend a lot of money to keep him around. He's already reportedly turned down a lofty contract extension because he knows he can get more money somewhere else.

As such, Reaves is likely to opt out of the final year of his contract, and while the Lakers could bring him back on the type of deal he will look for, that might not be in their best interests. Here, we'll explain why.

3 reasons why the Lakers shouldn't give Austin Reaves a huge extension

Defense

Austin Reaves isn't a defensive liability by any means, and he's put a lot of work into getting better on that end of the floor. Then again, he's not a plus-defender, either, and the Lakers need to get better on that end of the floor.

Deandre Ayton has never been much of a rim protector, LeBron James hasn't been a defensive force in years, and that has always been an Achilles point with Luka Doncic.

Luka Doncic

That brings us to the next point. Luka Doncic is the new face of the franchise. The Lakers are doing the right thing by giving him the keys to the car, but that makes Austin Reaves a little redundant. They're very similar players, at least on paper.

No disrespect to a great player like Reaves, but that makes this an easy decision for Rob Pelinka and his brass of decision-makers. They don't need to have more of the same, and Reaves has always looked much better when he's had the ball in his hands and sets drawn up for him.

Depth

Last but not least, the new CBA prevents teams from simply stacking up talent and putting together superteams. Ironically, a new approach highly influenced by LeBron James might be the biggest bump in the road for him to win his fifth NBA championship.

The Lakers have a good-not-great supporting cast for their stars, and spending big bucks on Reaves is only going to severely hamper their chances of fielding a more competitive squad. The only way to do so would be if LeBron were to take an unprecedented and massive paycut in his next contract, and that's not likely to happen.