The Los Angeles Lakers are 171-132 since adding Austin Reaves, the undrafted 6-foot-5 guard out of Arkansas whose Southern twang and rapid evolution have made him one of the most revered and recognizable players on the team. The day when Reaves has to part ways with the franchise will be a sad one indeed. Lakers governor Jeanie Buss, Lakers head coach JJ Redick, and Lakers stars LeBron James and Luka Doncic are just a few of the ancillary members of the organization that openly adore him.

As they say though, all good things must come to an end. Even if Reaves were to remain with L.A. for the remainder of his career, he’d have to throw his sneakers over the telephone lines eventually. There’s ample evidence of that with James, whose battle against Father Time has aided the perception of him being the greatest basketball player of all-time but cannot endure forever. Kobe Bryant, who played for the Lakers from his inception into the league until his body literally broke down, may be an even better example.

Could Austin Reaves Leave Lakers For Jazz In Free Agency?

Fortunately for Reaves, he’s likely nowhere near his final playing days. At 27 years old, he’s firmly in his physical prime. However, the clock may be running out on his time in Los Angeles. After turning down an $89.2 million contract extension offer from the Lakers last summer, it’s assumed that he’ll decline his 2026-27 player option. If so, he’ll enter free agency this offseason, becoming one of the most valuable free agents on the market.

If that does happen, the Utah Jazz may be “a team that has big interest” in signing him, according to Yahoo Sports reporter Kevin O’Connor says on The Kevin O’Connor Show (h/t HoopsHype):

“I think the Utah Jazz are going to be a team that has big interest in Austin Reaves this summer. There are going to be teams that make a big max offer for Reaves, and he’s going to have that choice. So the Lakers—like, Rich Paul’s not saying it—but I’m sure Rich Paul has that same exact information about where Reaves could go this offseason.”

Reaves is expected to command upwards of $35 million in his next contract.

To be clear, O’Connor doesn’t clarify whether this is pure speculation or based on insider information. The buzzword “sources” (which can be vexing to players, fans, media members and front office executives alike) wasn’t used. Even so, this isn’t the first time that the Jazz have been considered a potential suitor for Reaves.

During L.A.’s attempts to poach center Walker Kessler from Utah, the Jazz wanted Reaves to be included as part of the trade. Obviously, this framework was never agreed to. Nevertheless, it’s solid evidence of Utah’s long-standing interest in the ascending star.

With that in perspective, the Jazz are projected to have $68.8 million in maximum possible cap space, per Spotrac. In that scenario, they would clearly be able to afford to pay Reaves $35-40 million. At that point, he would become part of a core that features Lauri Markkanen, Ace Bailey, and Keyonte George. There are questions of the viability of such a grouping though. Defensively, they’re much too similar to the Lakers’ core of Reaves, James, and Doncic.

The Last Word On Austin Reaves Signing With The Jazz

There can be no doubt that Reaves prefers to remain with the Lakers. He didn’t turn down what would be a rich contract extension because he has misgivings about staying in Los Angeles. Perhaps heeding advice from his agent, he just deemed the number to be below what he might be able to earn if he played out this season.

Given the way he started out his 2025-26 campaign, he was right to bet on himself.

Through 23 games, he’s averaging career-highs of 26.6 points and 6.3 assists per game. Not only does he look like he can be Doncic’s Robin when James retires, he might be a Batman himself. This only makes it more likely that the Lakers will offer him another lucrative extension this summer.

At the end of the day though, money talks in the NBA. If the Jazz have a much stronger offer than L.A., it wouldn’t be shocking for Reaves to switch jerseys.