Ranking the 5 best available shooting guards in 2023 NBA free agency

3. Austin Reaves, Los Angeles Lakers

Never thought you’d see the day where Austin Reaves was a top free agent in the NBA? Most people would agree. But here we are – the third member of the Los Angeles Lakers‘ Big Three (sorry D’Angelo Russell) is preparing for a big offer sheet.

The fresh 25-year old was arguably the biggest bargain in the game this season. He joined the Lakers on a two-way contract after going undrafted before seeing that converted to a standard contract. His salary this year was $1.5 million, a far cry from what he’ll make a year from now.

In his second year, Reaves became one of the best shooters in the entire league. His true shooting percentage of 68.7 ranked fourth in the league. As a result, he also had one of the best offensive ratings in the NBA.

He was somehow even better during the postseason. He averaged 16.9 points per game, knocking down 44.3 percent of his three-pointers. Among qualified shooters, that mark ranks 12th in NBA history.

Reaves is a restricted free agent, so the Lakers will have the chance to match any offer sheet Reaves gets. Considering how popular he’s become in that market, the Lakers may not have much of a choice but to do so.

There are a bunch of complicated financials involved in Reaves’ restricted free agency, but he’s probably destined to get at least one four-year offer with an AAV of $20 million. Unless the Lakers are going off script – never an impossibility in Hollywood – they’d match that.