Following an impressive rookie season, Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves signed a shoe deal with Chinese sportswear brand Rigorer, becoming the company’s first NBA endorser. Things really got into swing this past offseason after Reaves took a huge leap in his second season becoming one of the Lakers’ most important pieces.
Reaves debuted his AR1 signature shoe, and would continue to debut multiple different colorways of his sneaker. The partnership with Rigorer has been an excellent one for both sides so it should come as no surprise that they would continue with this deal going forward.
According to Nick DePaula of Boardroom, Reaves has agreed to a long-term extension with Rigorer that will bring him over $1 million annually and the Lakers guard is excited to continue this partnership:
Now, Reaves is locking in for the long-term with a new signature shoe deal extension with Rigorer.
The multi-year deal, negotiated by his agents Aaron Reilly and Reggie Berry at the AMR Agency, will earn Reaves north of seven figures per year on the deal, along with royalties from sales of his signature product.
“I’m proud to continue this partnership with Rigorer,” said Reaves. “The team is incredible, and we’ve developed a signature shoe that I’m proud to put my name on, representing both high performance and accessibility. The team has welcomed me like family and I will always appreciate them for believing in me at this early stage of my career.”
Furthermore, this isn’t simply a matter of Reaves continuing as an endorser as this new deal will also make him an equity partner in the company, something that the Lakers guard felt was extremely important:
Not only will Reaves continue to build out his signature AR series with the brand, but he will also become an equity partner of the overall Rigorer company. Reaves will claim a substantial amount of shares during each year of the deal.
“As players, we’re aware of how the value of brands that we endorse and work with can really grow,” Reaves added. “To be able to enter into an equity partnership with Rigorer was a big deal for me, knowing that we can truly grow this company together going forward.”
And that excitement extends to the Rigorer side as well with founder Lin Chenyao voicing his pleasure and noting that the young guard will be heavily involved in a number of things to help grow the company:
“We are very excited that Austin becomes a shareholder of Rigorer as part of this extension,” said Lin. “It shows long-term commitments from both parties to continue growing and elevating this company. Austin will be heavily involved in the product development process to help create great product for basketball players around the world. We’re looking forward to further establishing our company’s ‘from players to players’ philosophy together ahead.”
The beauty of starring for the Lakers is the exposure that it can bring. Reaves has shined under the brightest lights for this franchise and now he has found an ideal business partner in terms of shoes and apparel. Now the two will continue to help each other grow.
Patrick Beverley vows to go at Lakers guard Austin Reaves in all future matchups
In addition to his new shoe deal, Reaves may also have found his first rival in former Lakers teammate and current Philadelphia 76ers guard Patrick Beverley. The latter hounded Reaves in a recent meeting and the two got into a minor dustup during the game as well.
During an ensuing podcast episode, Beverley revealed that Reaves hitting him with the ‘too little’ gesture last season bothered him and he vowed to go at the Lakers guard every single time the two play each other moving forward, adding that he took it personal as he got a fine and suspension for defending Reaves when the two were teammates.
Of course Beverley initially had a different reaction to the viral moment at his expense, so it likely is just a self-motivation tactic for the known agitator. But one thing that’s for sure is Reaves won’t back down.
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