One of the Los Angeles Lakers’ best players during their 2023 Western Conference Finals run was guard Austin Reaves, who has come a long way since going undrafted out of Oklahoma in 2021.
Reaves originally signed a two-way contract with the Lakers, although after an impressive Summer League and training came, he was upgraded to a standard NBA contract before the start of his rookie season.
That ended up working out great for both parties as Reaves’ game has continued to develop. He is now a restricted free agent and should be in for a big payday with the Lakers once free agency rolls around.
On the night of Reaves’ draft though, he actually had a chance to be selected by a number of teams in the second round. His agent Aaron Reilly of AMR Agency made it clear to teams that Reaves would prefer to not be drafted, however, so he could choose his landing spot and wind up in L.A.
Now two years later, Reilly and the Lakers are at it again. Shortly after the conclusion of the 2023 NBA Draft, it was reported that the Lakers signed Florida center Colin Castleton to a two-way contract. Another client of Reilly’s, it appears that Castleton also had the chance to get drafted but chose not to in order to sign with the Lakers:
Laker Nation is going to fall in love with this guy. Chose his destination much like another pretty solid Laker…. https://t.co/FotvC82Bd8
— Aaron Reilly (@AMRAgency) June 23, 2023
Every kid dreams of hearing their name called by the commissioner on draft day, so for Castleton to follow in Reaves’ footsteps and forego that opportunity shows how serious he is about playing for the Lakers and earning a roster spot the same way Reaves did two years ago.
If there’s one thing the Lakers’ roster is currently lacking it is big men, so Castleton will have a chance to show what he’s capable of in Summer League to try to work his one from a two-way to standard NBA player.
In his final season at Florida, the 6’11” center averaged 17 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 3.0 blocks in 31.2 minutes per game.
Lakers Las Vegas Summer League schedule is out
Speaking of Summer League, the Lakers’ Las Vegas schedule was recently released and they will be playing the Golden state Warriors on July 7, the Charlotte Hornets on July 9, the Boston Celtics on July 12 and Memphis Grizzlies on July 14.
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