"I had to read this sh*t twice" - Austin Rivers almost thought he was joining the LA Lakers

Austin Rivers with the Denver Nuggets in the 2020-21 NBA season [Source: USA Today]
Austin Rivers with the Denver Nuggets in the 2020-21 NBA season [Source: USA Today]

Austin Rivers has been around the league a lot and he thought he had to find a new home once again. The NBA offseason is filled with drama, with many names changing teams on the fly and lineups getting altered in the blink of an eye.

In one of the breaking news reports by Shams Charania, he announced that rookie Austin Reaves is signing with the LA Lakers on a two-way deal ahead of training camp.

Charania, who works for Stadium and The Athletic, often reposts his tweets on Instagram. Seeing the similarities between their names, Denver Nuggets guard Austin Rivers was taken aback when he misread Reaves' name and thought he had been traded again. He commented on the Instagram post, saying:

"I’m not going to lie... I had to read this sh*t twice. I thought I was going to have to pack again smh."

Austin Rivers returns to the Denver Nuggets for one year while Austin Reaves signs a two-year deal with the LA Lakers

Austin Reaves at the LA Lakers Media Day
Austin Reaves at the LA Lakers Media Day

Austin Reaves has signed a two-year contract with the LA Lakers ahead of training camp. He was previously on a two-way deal and will now fill the 14th roster spot on the SoCal team.

Reaves showed promise during the Summer League, averaging 6.6 points, 2.0 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 1.0 steals across 5 games. Although his shooting efficiency wasn't up to the mark, he did convert 100% of his free throws.

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Meanwhile, Austin Rivers has just signed a one-year deal with the Denver Nuggets. Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets acquired him mid-season from the New York Knicks and he played 15 games for them, averaging 8.7 points and 2.6 assists on 37.5% shooting from beyond the arc.

He found a decent role with the team and Jamal Murray is expected to be absent for the majority of the upcoming season as well, hence Rivers decided to return to the Denver Nuggets. Hence, it is understandable why he was astounded when he thought he had been traded to the LA Lakers.

You can read the LA Lakers' roster and preseason schedule here.

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Edited by Rohit Mishra