Lakers’ Austin Reaves gets signature shoe deal with Chinese company, per report

Only two members of the Los Angeles Lakers have a signature shoe deal. You can probably guess that the first is LeBron James. Surprisingly, the second isn’t eight-time All-Star Anthony Davis. How about former All-Star point guard D’Angelo Russell? Nope, try again. Russell Westbrook has a signature shoe at Jordan Brand, but he obviously now plays for the Los Angeles Clippers. So who’s behind Door No. 2? 

That would be second-year sensation Austin Reaves, who is quickly emerging as one of the NBA‘s better young guards. ESPN’s Nick DePaula is reporting that Reaves will get a signature shoe from Chinese company Rigorer, which will be called the AR1.

Reaves has been wearing Rigorer shoes throughout the 2022-23 season. He is the first NBA player to sign with Rigorer, but a number of players have signed shoe deals with Chinese apparel companies in recent years. Most notably, Dwyane Wade and C.J. McCollum represent Li-Ning, and Klay Thompson and Gordon Hayward represent Anta.

Reaves is averaging 12.4 points per game this season, but he’s saved his best basketball for when the Lakers have needed it most. 

Since James went down in a February game against the Dallas Mavericks, Reaves is averaging 17.4 points per game, and now that James is back, the Lakers have emerged as a legitimate contender to win the Western Conference. Less than two years after going undrafted, Reaves could soon become both a key part of a playoff team and a high-profile sneaker seller.