The first day of free agency was a quiet one for the Los Angeles Lakers, although they did make one signing, bringing in wing Jake LaRavia on a reported two-year, $12 million contract.
Signing LaRavia helps make up for the loss of Dorian Finney-Smith, who agreed to a four-year contract at the start of free agency with the Houston Rockets.
At just 23 years of age, LaRavia will bring some youth to the Lakers on the wing. It appears he was a priority as according to Dan Woike of The Athletic, the Lakers’ first call at the start of free agency was to LaRavia:
LaRavia is represented by Aaron Reilly and Reggie Berry, the same agency team that represents Reaves. Reaves made a surprise cameo at the end of a long LaRavia interview this summer, when it turned out that the car LaRavia was riding in was being driven by his future Lakers teammate
According to league sources, LaRavia was the Lakers’ first call when free agency officially opened at 3 p.m. Pacific Time on Monday. In his conversation with Rob Pelinka and Lakers coach JJ Redick, LaRavia and his team were impressed with the ways Pelinka sold the strengths of the Lakers’ brand and Redick’s detailed vision for how he’d like to use the young wing.
In 136 career games across three seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies and Sacramento Kings, LaRavia has averaged 6.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists while shooting 37.1% from 3-point range. In 66 games this past season split between the two teams, he put up 6.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists.
While those numbers don’t jump off the page, the Lakers are obviously confident that he will continue to improve with their core.
Rich Paul says Lakers and LeBron James have not talked trades
The expectation is that Jake LaRavia will be teaming up with LeBron James as despite all of the noise surrounding the 40-year-old, his agent Rich Paul of Klutch Sports confirmed that no trade talks have taken place between them and the Lakers.
“What he is saying on behalf of LeBron James is that LeBron James has a few years left to play, and he’s still playing at a high level,” NBA insider Chris Haynes reported. “He wants to win and he said LeBron understands the priority is Luka and maximizing his timeline… He made it clear LeBron is supportive of that. At the same time, the desire is that the Lakers also prioritize him as well and make sure they’re doing everything that they can to still compete now. That’s all he was saying. [Rich Paul] told me there has been no trade discussions, there are have been no trade talks with the Lakers, people have been speculating on certain teams that he might be interested in. I’m told that all that talk is false. There has been no trade talk, there has been no extension talk. He clearly opted in and he wants to win. He believes the Lakers have what it takes to maximize Luka’s timeline, but also maximize and prioritize his timeline. That’s what Rich Paul wanted to get clear.”
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? It’s the best way to watch player interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in live shows, and more!
