The Los Angeles Lakers are intent on making Austin Reaves a franchise staple.

In his latest Substack — and consistent with prior reporting — well-connected NBA reporter Marc Stein reaffirmed the organization's desire to match any offer that may be presented to the 25-year-old restricted free agent, who went undrafted just two years ago.

Per Stein:

“The Lakers, league sources say, are a lock to match any offer on Reaves — even if someone signs Reaves to the maximum allowable offer sheet worth nearly $100 million over four years.”

The Lakers have never wavered on Reaves. At exit interviews, Rob Pelinka — who was not authorized to speak on impending free agents — said the following when asked about retaining Reaves:

“I would say this resoundingly clear: Our intentions our to keep our young core together … We want to do our best to fit the puzzle together … Austin, in particular, had an incredible year. I think he defines what’s at the heart of playing for the Lakers. He’s a selfless, team-first guy. He lives in the gym. He loves the big moment. He’s been able to meet the big moment. I think he’s the guy that, regardless of what his deal is, it won’t change him as a person. And we’ll hang our hat on that.”

Shortly after, Reaves firmly stated his preference to remain in Los Angeles.

“I want to be here. It feels like home to me in a sense. Obviously, it’s a lot different than my actual home. It’s a little bigger, a lot more people, worse traffic. But I told somebody a couple of months ago that it feels like a home for me. Basically, the way the fans support me, the players, coach and the staff, front office, this is definitely somewhere I want to be, but we’ll see what happens.”

Reaves was the Lakers' third-best player in the second half of 2022-23. His emergence as lead play-maker sparked their run to the Western Conference Finals. Austin averaged 16.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 4.6 assists and shot 44.3% from 3 in his debut postseason.

The Lakers can initially offer Reaves a four-year, $50(ish) million contract. Another team can then offer about $100 million — with about $75 million coming over the final two years — per the Arenas rule. Los Angeles can exceed the cap to match any offer.

Reaves' first signature shoe is set to drop in August … and the colorway used in the promotion is purple-and-gold.