Jake Laravia Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers Notes: Reaves, LeBron, Thiero, Hawks Loss

November 10th, 2025 at 6:53pm CST by Rory Maher

After initially being listed as questionable for Monday’s contest in Charlotte, Lakers guard Austin Reaves was subsequently upgraded to probable and then available, as Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group tweets.

Reaves had missed the past three games with a right groin injury. The 27-year-old, who is expected to become a free agent next summer, was back in the starting lineup on Monday alongside Luka Doncic, Marcus Smart, Rui Hachimura and Deandre Ayton.

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Superstar forward LeBron James is expected to practice with the G League’s South Bay Lakers later this week, according to Price (Twitter link). James was recently cleared for contact work and is ramping up to make his season debut after dealing with sciatica on his right side. The 40-year-old was selected to his record-extending 20th All-NBA team in 2024/25.
While Adou Thiero is out again Monday, head coach JJ Redick is optimistic that the rookie forward could make his NBA debut during the team’s current road trip, tweets Law Murray of The Athletic. The Lakers have three more road games this week (at Oklahoma City, New Orleans and Milwaukee) before returning home to Los Angeles. Thiero, 21, was selected 36th overall in the 2025 draft. He has been sidelined with a knee injury he sustained in college at Arkansas.
Although the Lakers were shorthanded in Saturday’s loss in Atlanta, so were the Hawks, who were down six players, including Trae Young, Kristaps Porzingis, Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker. The lopsided defeat snapped a five-game winning streak for the Lakers. “This isn’t the identity of this team,” forward Jake LaRavia said, per Thuc Nhi Nguyen of The Los Angeles Times. “This game was an outlier of the first 10 games that we played. [We have to] just not let it break us and be ready to play the next game.”

Lakers Notes: Bronny, Reaves, Offense, Vincent

November 8th, 2025 at 9:46pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers‘ injury woes are providing an opportunity for Bronny James, who’s seeing regular minutes for the first time in his career, writes Thuc Nhi Nguyen of The Los Angeles Times. The second-year shooting guard was on the court for 18 and 19 minutes in back-to-back wins over Miami and Portland earlier this week and made an impact in the fourth quarter of both games. He contributed three steals against the Heat and had six assists with no turnovers against the Trail Blazers.

“Ready to take advantage of the times that I get when our guys are out,” James said. “I’m going to stay aggressive.”

Coach JJ Redick attributes James’ improvement to his ability to adjust to the speed of the NBA game. Redick wants his players to determine whether they’re going to shoot, dribble or pass within a half-second of receiving the ball, and James wasn’t ready as a rookie to make those quick decisions.

“He’s now developed where he’s got a great point-five mentality,” Redick said. “He’s catch-and-shoot ready at all times.”

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Austin Reaves missed his third straight game on Saturday, but it doesn’t sound like he’ll be out of action much longer, Nguyen adds in the same piece. Medical imaging revealed that he has a mild right groin strain, but Reddick told reporters that Reaves’ pain level is “really low.” Nguyen states that Reaves plans to play golf during the five-game road trip and he could be back in action before the Lakers return home.
Khobi Price of The Orange County Register examines how the offense has been able to succeed despite the absence of LeBron James, who remains sidelined with sciatica. Luka Doncic (40 PPG) and Reaves (31.1) have led the attack, but the Lakers can also rely on scoring depth, with Deandre Ayton (17.5), Rui Hachimura (16.7), Jake LaRavia (12.1) and Marcus Smart (10.3) all averaging in double figures.
Redick said Gabe Vincent is making progress in his recovery from a sprained left ankle that has sidelined him since October 26, Price tweets. Vincent hasn’t done any contact work yet, but Redick is hoping his two- to four-week recovery timeline is closer to three weeks.

Lakers Notes: Luka, Reaves, Ayton, Kleber, LaRavia, Smart

November 3rd, 2025 at 4:43pm CST by Rory Maher

Lakers guards Luka Doncic (lower left leg contusion injury management) and Austin Reaves (right groin soreness) have been ruled out for Monday’s contest in Portland, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com relays.

It’s the second night of a back-to-back for Los Angeles, which defeated Miami on Sunday to improve to 5-2 on the season.

Doncic missed three games last week due to the leg injury as well as a left finger sprain. This will be his fourth missed game.

As for Reaves, this will be his first absence of the 2025/26 campaign. A source tells Dan Woike of The Athletic (Twitter link) that the 27-year-old played through the groin issue on Sunday and the team is hopeful that it isn’t serious.

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Starting center Deandre Ayton missed the second half of Friday’s win over Memphis and all of Sunday’s contest due to back spasms, per Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group. “He’s still dealing with some tightness and spasms in that mid-back,” head coach JJ Redick said before Sunday’s game. The Bahamian big man is questionable vs. Portland, McMenamin notes, as is Maxi Kleber, who could make his season debut on Monday after missing the first seven games with an strained abdominal muscle.
After a slow start over his first four games (6.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists on .348/.333/.556 shooting), free agent addition Jake LaRavia has been scorching hot in the past three contests, averaging 21.7 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 2.3 APG, and 2.7 SPG on .781/.667/.583 shooting. Redick was effusive in his praise of the 6’8″ forward after Sunday’s win, saying he “just knows how to play,” as Dan Woike of The Athletic writes. “He just has a really good feel,” Redick said of LaRavia. “His knack for the basketball as a defender. His knack for the basketball as a rebounder. He just has a real intuitive feel for the game.”
According to Jillian Adge of The Kings Herald (Twitter link), the Kings were determined to keep LaRavia in free agency but were outbid by the Lakers — Sacramento was limited to offering the 24-year-old a starting salary of $5.16MM in 2025/26 after Memphis declined his fourth-year option last fall, while L.A. was able to exceed that figure ($6MM this season and next). Matt George of ABC 10 confirms (via Twitter) the Kings wanted to re-sign LaRavia and were confident they’d be able to, but the extra money — and LaRavia’s close relationship with Reaves — made signing with the Lakers an “easy” call for the former first-round pick.
Veteran guard Marcus Smart, another free agent addition, had a solid all-around performance on Sunday, finishing with 11 points, four assists, three rebounds, two steals and a block. He also made several “momentum-changing hustle plays,” according to Price. “Unbelievable impact,” Doncic said of Smart. “I’ve played against this guy a lot. He was always guarding me, so I know how it feels for the other team. I’m glad he’s on my team, and the impact he has [is] unbelievable. He’s been hustling every game, every moment, every minute, every second.”

Lakers Notes: Doncic, LeBron, Starting Lineup, Smart

October 11th, 2025 at 9:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

After missing the Lakers‘ first two preseason games, Luka Doncic will play in two of the last four, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Coach JJ Redick announced the plan on Saturday, but he didn’t specify when Doncic will be active and said it hasn’t been determined if he’ll suit up for Sunday’s matchup with Golden State. L.A. will also face Phoenix on Tuesday, Dallas on Wednesday and Sacramento on Friday.

Doncic has been given a reduced workload in practice to allow him to recover from an intense summer representing Slovenia at EuroBasket. He was a full participant during Saturday’s session.

“I had (the) national team,” Doncic said. “Playing one month or something of basketball (for Slovenia). Obviously it’s a long season ahead, so just because of that.”

The Lakers dropped their first two preseason contests while using a modified lineup because Doncic and LeBron James were unavailable.

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Doncic won’t go into games with the feeling that he has to do more while James recovers from sciatica, which is expected to sideline him for at least three to four weeks, McMenamin states in the same piece. “It’s a big change,” Doncic said of having to play without James. “He’s a great player. He can help us a lot. But at the end of the day, our mentality needs to be ‘next man up.’ We got a group of guys that have been practicing and hopefully LeBron can join us as soon as possible. We are going to obviously need him. But our mentality has got to be ‘next man up.'”
James’ absence is presenting a huge challenge for Redick in putting together a starting lineup, McMenamin adds. Doncic, Austin Reaves and Deandre Ayton are definite starters heading into the season, but the other two spots are up for grabs. Power forward Rui Hachimura started 57 of the 59 games he played last season, but Jarred Vanderbilt started the first two preseason contests and is fully healthy for the first time in two years. Free agent additions Jake LaRavia and Marcus Smart could contend for the other starting role, depending on whether Redick wants to emphasize offense or defense against a given opponent.
Smart will make his preseason debut on Sunday after sitting out the first two games with Achilles tendinopathy, according to Khobi Price of The Orange County Register. Reaves, who played in the opener but missed the second game, is also expected to be available.

Lakers Notes: Vincent, Ayton, LaRavia, Smart

October 7th, 2025 at 9:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Lakers didn’t have their “big three” available for their second preseason contest, a 111-103 loss to Golden State. It was an improvement from their 22-point loss to Phoenix. With Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves sitting out, Gabe Vincent led the way with 16 points and five assists.

“We came with more intention,” Vincent said, per Thuc Nhi Nguyen of the Los Angeles Times. “We were more focused. Obviously it’s different with those three not playing. They’re a huge part of our team and everything that we do. But next man up.”

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They were outscored by 25 points by Golden State with Deandre Ayton on the court but it’s going to take time for the Lakers to incorporate his skills, Law Murray of The Athletic writes. Murray notes Ayton is going to be very dependent on his play-makers to get him shots, unlike Anthony Davis. He’s not going to get a lot of touches to create shots for others or spread the floor with outside shooting, but it’s not time to panic about Ayton’s ability to help the team, Murray adds.
Jake LaRavia contributed 10 points and three assists against the Warriors and said he’s “already pretty comfortable with the role that I have” with his new team, Dave McMenamin of ESPN tweets. LaRavia left the Kings and signed a two-year deal with the Lakers at the start of free agency.
Marcus Smart participated in the live play portions of practice on Tuesday, per coach JJ Redick, Khobi Price of the Orange County Register tweets. Smart has been limited in camp due to Achilles tendinopathy. “He looked great. He was moving great,” forward Jarred Vanderbilt said, per Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. “But like I said, his main power is that he’s vocal. So being able to help the guys. Communicate, that’s a big part of defense also. Being physical is one of them, but also being vocal, being able to communicate. I think he does both at a very high level. So, he can definitely help us on that end of the floor.” Smart signed with the Lakers after getting bought out by Washington.

L.A. Notes: Doncic, Lakers, Lopez, Clippers

October 3rd, 2025 at 8:03pm CST by Eli Cohen

Getting the Lakers into peak physical condition appears to be head coach JJ Redick‘s primary goal entering the season, writes ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. Redick refers to it as being in “championship shape,” and notes that the directive is not only aimed at star Luka Doncic, though Doncic is one of the more visible examples of the fitness push.

As McMenamin writes, remaking his body through dieting and rigorous exercise routines has been the focus for Doncic this summer, both for himself and for the team as a whole.

“It’s not just physical shape, it’s mental shape, too,” the Slovenian star said. “Both are very important. We’re doing it in practice. It was great. Everybody’s in great shape. Everybody’s running a lot, so it’s been great so far.”

Despite Doncic’s efforts to reshape his body this offseason, he will not play in the Lakers’ preseason games this weekend, according to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter), who calls it a collaborative decision with the Lakers’ performance team. Redick had previously said he’d be careful about overextending Doncic too early after the 26-year-old’s run with the Slovenian national team in EuroBasket.

While Doncic isn’t playing this weekend, Redick is expecting him to play at some point during the preseason, tweets Sportskeeda’s Mark Medina.

LeBron James, Marcus Smart, Adou Thiero, and Maxi Kleber are all expected to miss tonight’s game against the Suns as well.

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The Lakers remade their roster this offseason, but there are still significant questions to answer, writes Eric Pincus for Bleacher Report. Health will play a key role in the team’s outlook, along with the natural wear and tear that can be expected for the 40-year-old James. However, the most pressing unknown revolves around the fifth starting spot. Pincus names Smart, Rui Hachimura, and Jake LaRavia as three players most likely competing for the role. Hachimura has experience with the team and has shown himself to be a consistent shooter, having made 41.8% of his three-point tries over the last two seasons in L.A. Pincus calls LaRavia a high-effort defender who can also shoot the ball at 6’7″, while Smart brings a perimeter defensive toughness that a team built around Doncic, James, and Austin Reaves could use. Pincus also throws Jarred Vanderbilt‘s name into the mix as a potential dark-horse option.
The Clippers brought Brook Lopez into the fold in an effort to reduce the burden on breakout defensive stalwart Ivica Zubac this season, writes Janis Carr for the Orange County Register. “We didn’t really have a backup center (last season), so when things got tough, we always had to get Zu back in the game,” head coach Tyronn Lue said. “I thought he played for too many minutes. If you asked him, he didn’t play enough, but for me it’s just too many minutes.” While Zubac was always up for the challenge and turned in the best season of his career, the Clippers now have the luxury of bringing a longtime starter and multi-time Defensive Player of the Year candidate off the bench in Lopez. As an added bonus, Lopez and Zubac have a Los Angeles-based history together. “I played with Zu with the Lakers almost 10 years ago now. I think it was his second year in the league, and he was a very talented, raw young player then,” Lopez said. “But to see his growth, it’s astonishing.“
Lopez wasn’t the only big-name acquisition for the Clippers this summer. They also added Bradley Beal, John Collins, and brought back Chris Paul. They now have one of the deepest benches in the league, but that brings with it questions about how the rotation will shake out, writes Law Murray for The Athletic. Murray predicts that Beal will be the starting shooting guard and suggests that Collins could have a chance to start at the four, sliding Kawhi Leonard to the three. However, with so many talented players, some will likely be squeezed from the rotation. When asked about his role with the team, Nicolas Batum said, “Ask (Lue) that question, I don’t know… I mean, I’m here to play basketball.” Murray writes that he considers Batum the most likely odd man out when everyone is healthy.

Pacific Notes: Monk, Kuminga, Leonard, LaRavia

October 2nd, 2025 at 9:49am CST by Dana Gauruder

Malik Monk knows that the Kings were willing to deal him in order to acquire Jonathan Kuminga from the Warriors. Monk’s contract, which runs through the 2027/28 season and includes a player option, wasn’t one Golden State was willing to take on.

Now that Kuminga has signed a two-year contract with Golden State, that saga has ended and Monk says he looks at Sacramento as his home and “loves” it there, according to Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee.

“For some people, yeah, but for me, what I’ve been through, no,” Monk said of whether he let the trade talk bother him. “And my support system is amazing. My brother, my agent, my mom, they always keep me upbeat, but I came to talk to (new general manager Scott Perry), too, right before everything, and he told me the same thing my agent told me. I like that from Scott. I appreciate him for coming forward and telling me to come talk to him. That’s being professional. A lot of GMs don’t do that, so I thank Scott for that.”

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Following contentious negotiations, Kuminga chose to sign a contract that would still allow him to be trade-eligible in mid-January. It also includes a team option. That means the speculation about his future won’t die down, Nick Friedell of The Athletic notes. Coach Steve Kerr says he doesn’t blame Kuminga for trying to get the best contract possible as a restricted free agent. “It’s just, this is the business we’re in, you know?” Kerr said. “I never begrudge any player for trying to get the best contract that he can. In fact, having been a player, I always feel like it’s part of my job to help our guys do the best they can come contract-wise and help them become the best players that they can be. Put themselves in the best position to have a great career, to sign a good contract, take care of their families. These are short careers, and so I want all our players to do well, how it gets there sometimes can be messy. I’m not worried about any of that.”
Kawhi Leonard addressed to a certain extent the allegation that the Clippers tried to circumvent the salary cap by arranging an alleged no-show endorsement deal with the now-defunct company Aspiration. He claims he’s not worried about the league’s on-going investigation, according to Law Murray of The Athletic. “The NBA is going to do their job,” Leonard said. “None of us did no wrongdoing. And yeah, I mean, that’s it. We invite the investigations. It’s not going to be a distraction for me or the rest of the team.” The Clippers have become experts in blocking out all the outside noise, Murray opines in a separate story.
The Lakers signed Jake LaRavia to a two-year contract during free agency. It was a low-profile move but the Lakers hope the 23-year-old forward can be a big part of their future, Thuc Nhi Nguyen of the Los Angeles Times writes. “To get a young player — a young player in free agency for a team that is trying to win a championship — it’s an incredible opportunity for myself and our player development department to have him continue to grow,” head coach JJ Redick said. “Jake, I’m very high on him. His level of commitment to what we’ve asked of the guys this offseason has been very high.”

Lakers Notes: Smart, Vanderbilt, Kleber, Backcourt Rotation, Koloko

October 1st, 2025 at 10:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Head coach JJ Redick is hoping the offseason addition of Marcus Smart and better health from Jarred Vanderbilt will improve the Lakers‘ perimeter defense, writes Khobi Price of the Orange County Register. Smart is a former Defensive Player of the Year and Vanderbilt has also been a highly regarded defender, but they’ve both been slowed by injuries over the past two seasons.

“With a healthy Vando and hopefully a healthy Marcus, our ability to put more pressure on the basketball earlier in the defensive possession will be a real thing,” Redick said.

Smart has been limited in camp due to Achilles tendinopathy, but Redick told reporters that he should be fully recovered by the end of the week. He has only played 54 combined games the past two seasons, and the Lakers are counting on him to be an anchor for their defense.

“I’ve talked with JJ and what he expects from me on both ends, especially the defensive end,” Smart said. “It’s everything I’ve been doing my whole career. It’s nothing new and I remember the first thing he told me was, ‘Hey, if we’re going to get the Celtics’ Marcus Smart, that’s who we want, that’s who we need. And we need you to be that person and be who you are.’ So for me, it’s just coming out and giving everything I got on this court and leaving it out there every night.”

Vanderbilt had surgery on both feet last summer and didn’t make his season debut until January 25. He said he’s feeling much better in training camp after being able to train during the offseason.

“It feels great being able to have a full summer under my belt. I was able to really work on my game, work on my body, and just having that confidence going into the year instead of playing catch up,” Vanderbilt said. “Being able to be a part of training camp early, and it’s a different level of approach and preparation when you already put the work in and being able to start fresh.”

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Maxi Kleber was set to undergo an MRI on Wednesday after tweaking his quad on the second day of camp, according to Lakers reporter Jovan Buha (Twitter link). Redick said the injury doesn’t appear to be serious, Buha adds.
Redick listed Smart, Gabe Vincent and Jake LaRavia as locks for the backcourt rotation along with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, Buha tweets.
Christian Koloko believes this year’s version of the Lakers is more driven to succeed (Twitter video link from ESPN’s Dave McMenamin). “You can just see that everybody is like more hungry,” K0loko said. “We knew what we did last year, we could have done better. We want to do better. We want to win the championship. Everybody knows what it takes to get to that next level.”

Community Shootaround: Breakout Candidates

September 7th, 2025 at 10:27pm CST by Rory Maher

In an article for HoopsHype, Mike Shearer lists seven players who could be primed for breakout seasons in 2025/26. Here’s his full list:

Shaedon Sharpe (Trail Blazers)
Bennedict Mathurin (Pacers)
Andrew Nembhard (Pacers)
Sam Hauser (Celtics)
Brandon Miller (Hornets)
Jake LaRavia (Lakers)
Terrence Shannon Jr. (Timberwolves)

Shearer acknowledges that Sharpe’s inclusion is a little unconventional, as the 22-year-old averaged a career-best 18.5 points per game in ’24/25. But the Canadian wing is entering the final year of his rookie scale contract and is eligible for an extension until October 20, so he certainly has financial reasons to be motivated for a big season.

Mathurin, who is also eligible for a rookie scale extension, should have a big role for Indiana with Tyrese Haliburton out for the year. Ditto for Nembhard, one of the league’s more unheralded role players who has a chance to show he can be more than that this season.

Boston revamped its roster this offseason for financial and roster-building reasons. There were rumblings that Hauser might be on the trade block, but he’s still a Celtic, and Shearer believes the former Virginia star should have plenty of opportunities to shine in ’25/26.

Shearer also describes why he thinks Miller (second season cut short due to wrist surgery), LaRavia (essentially replacing Dorian Finney-Smith) and Shannon (a Nickeil Alexander-Walker replacement?) could take leaps forward.

We want to know what you think. Do you agree with the players on Shearer’s list? If not, why? Which other players could be primed for breakout seasons? Head to the comment section to weigh in.

Contract Details: Capela, VanVleet, Lopez, Ayton, LaRavia, Kalkbrenner

July 7th, 2025 at 2:16pm CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets‘ new three-year deal with Clint Capela includes a 5% trade kicker, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

The fully guaranteed deal is worth $21,105,000 over three years, Hoops Rumors has confirmed, coming in slightly below the initially reported price of $21.5MM. It includes a first-year salary of $6.7MM, with an ascending structure that sees it increase to $7.37MM by year three.

Here are a few more details on some recently signed contracts from around the NBA:

Fred VanVleet‘s two-year, $50MM contract with the Rockets has a flat structure, with a $25MM first-year salary and a $25MM player option for 2026/27, Hoops Rumors has learned.
Brook Lopez‘s two-year deal with the Clippers came in slightly below the reported $18MM price. It uses $8.75MM of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception for the 2025/26 season, leaving L.A. with $5,354,000 still to use. Lopez’s second-year team option is worth $9,187,500
The Lakers‘ used up their entire $14,104,000 non-taxpayer mid-level exception on Deandre Ayton ($8,104,000) and Jake LaRavia ($6MM), as expected. Those salary figures are also Ayton’s and LaRavia’s cap hits for 2026/27 — Ayton’s second year is a player option and LaRavia’s is fully guaranteed.
No. 34 overall pick Ryan Kalkbrenner signed a four-year, $9.97MM contract with the Hornets, according to Scotto (Twitter link). That’s the most he could earn under the terms of the second-round pick exception. Kalkbrenner’s first two years are fully guaranteed, with a third-year trigger date and a fourth-year team option, Scotto adds.

Jake LaRavia