Austin Reaves recently received an unusual piece of financial advice.
Spend more money.
Fresh off signing a four-year, $185 million maximum contract with the Los Angeles Lakers, Reaves admitted he still hasn’t made a major purchase for himself despite becoming the highest-paid undrafted player in NBA history.
“I haven’t bought myself anything,” Reaves said during an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show at the American Century Championship in Lake Tahoe.
“My financial adviser told me the other day that I needed to spend more money. So, I struggle with that.”
Instead of splurging on himself, Reaves said he’d rather spend his money on the people closest to him.
“I’m more—I like getting gifts for other people,” Reaves said. “So yeah, I’ve done a little bit of that.”
After Reaves confirmed he was still dating longtime girlfriend Jenna Barber, host Dan Patrick joked that perhaps she could help solve his financial adviser’s concern.
Reaves laughed.
“Yeah, I’ll give her the card and she’ll do what he asked,” Reaves joked, referring to his financial adviser’s suggestion to spend more money.
Austin Reaves’ Financial Journey Has Come Full Circle
Getty Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves just signed a four-year, $185 million maximum contract, the richest deal for an undrafted player in NBA history.
The conversation underscored just how dramatically Reaves’ financial life has changed since entering the NBA.
After going undrafted in 2021, Reaves signed a two-way contract with the Lakers before earning a two-year, $2.5 million rookie contract. He quickly established himself as one of the NBA’s biggest bargains, outperforming the four-year, $54 million deal he signed in 2023.
That steady rise culminated this offseason when the Lakers rewarded him with a four-year, $185 million maximum contract—the richest deal ever signed by an undrafted player in NBA history.
Despite the life-changing payday, Reaves insists his spending habits have barely changed.
Family Still Comes First Reaves
Reaves’ comments echoed what those closest to him have long said about his approach to money.
After signing his four-year, $54 million contract in 2023, Reaves’ biggest purchase for himself was a new set of golf clubs.
According to his older brother, Spencer Reaves, Austin has never been interested in the lavish lifestyle often associated with NBA stars. Instead, he has preferred using his earnings to take care of his family.
Spencer told the California Post that Austin bought their father a golf club membership and paid for a trip for their mother. Following his new maximum contract, Austin was already asking relatives whether anyone wanted new golf clubs.
“He doesn’t like cars, he doesn’t like jewelry, he doesn’t party,” Spencer told the Post. “He’s shopping around for anyone in the family if they want to get new golf clubs.”
The golf course has become the backdrop for some of the biggest moments of Reaves’ offseason.
Barber recently shared his reaction after his agent called with news that the Lakers were offering him the four-year, $185 million maximum contract. The moment, captured in an Instagram Story, showed Reaves overcome with emotion after learning he had become the recipient of the richest contract ever awarded to an undrafted player in NBA history.
A few weeks later, another day on the golf course produced a very different memory. Reaves said he was playing at Pinehurst when Barber texted him about LeBron James‘ departure from the Lakers, prompting him to text his longtime teammate jokingly: “I was having a great day on the golf course till you ruined it.”
Whether celebrating a historic payday or reacting to a franchise-changing offseason, the golf course has unexpectedly become the setting for some of Reaves’ most memorable moments.
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