Austin Reaves Coy About Potential New Shoe Deal

Oct 5, 2026; Sacramento, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) smiles on the bench during the fourth quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images Oct 5, 2026; Sacramento, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) smiles on the bench during the fourth quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

Austin Reaves Coy About Potential New Shoe Deal

Originally posted on Lakers Nation | By Corey Hansford | Last updated Oct 12, 2026 1:10 PM ET

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Back in 2023, as he was first beginning to come into his own as a core player for the Los Angeles Lakers, Austin Reaves signed his first signature shoe deal with Chinese brand Rigorer. Reaves’ first signature shoe, the AR1, launched in August of that year and he has remained with the brand ever since.

During this year’s training camp, however, it was noticed that Reaves hadn’t been wearing Rigorer shoes, but instead had been sporting other sneakers like Nikes, in particular the signature shoes of Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. When asked about it after practice, Reaves remained mum on his potential shoe deal, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:

After signing with the Chinese sportswear brand Rigorer in 2023, Austin Reaves was wearing a pair of Nike Kobe 5 Protros at practice Sunday.

When asked about them, Reaves did not elaborate on his sneaker free agency, simply saying: “I’m a big Kobe fan” https://t.co/MjXebuTkmT

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) October 11, 2026

Just the fact that Reaves is wearing Nikes instead of his own shoes says a lot. Shoe companies are notoriously strict about their athletes sporting any other competing brands and Reaves was Rigorer’s first NBA athlete. According to some reports though, the guard is a sneaker free agent and could already have another deal in place.

The fact that Reaves could have shut down any speculation but chose not to is also telling. At the end of 2023, Reaves signed a multi-year extension with Rigorer that also gave him equity in the company. But his popularity has grown immensely since then and he has just signed his biggest contract to date this past offseason. It is very possible that his contract with Rigorer has simply expired and now he is exploring other options.

Of course, Reaves’ main focus will be helping to push the Lakers to greater heights with the regular season just around the corner. But if he is sporting another pair of Nike Kobe 5 Protros on Opening Night, people will be talking. Reaves has also worn the Jordan Brand shoes of his Lakers teammate Luka Doncic during warmups in the preseason.

Austin Reaves excited about Lakers roster

So far, the preseason has provided some encouraging signs for these new-look Lakers with so many new faces on the roster. And while Reaves is encouraged and excited about what’s to come for this squad, he also understands the need for this team to continue building up their chemistry together.

This article first appeared on Los Angeles Lakers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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