Austin Reaves gets unique endorsement deal with Chinese brand

Dec 13, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) warms up prior to the game against the Boston Celtics at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Austin Reaves is cashing in on his popularity overseas.

Shams Charania of The Athletic reported Monday that the Los Angeles Lakers fan favorite Reaves has renegotiated an extension with Chinese sportswear brand Rigorer that will now make him a part-owner in the company. Reaves will also be debuting new colorways in his signature sneaker line with Rigorer, the AR1, to be released later this week.

The 25-year-old Reaves first signed with Rigorer last June. Charania reported at the time that Reaves’ original endorsement deal with the company was in the seven-figure range.

According to Rigorer’s website, they are a sporting goods brand that specializes in basketball and also offers a wide range of protection gear. Officially based in Singapore, Rigorer sells a variety of club merchandise for teams in Singapore’s National Basketball League (NBL) as well.

As for Reaves, he has had quite the glow-up over the last few years. He was an undrafted player who signed with the Lakers on a two-way contract in 2021. Reaves soon worked his way up to a standard contract and emerged as a meaningful contributor for the Lakers on both ends of the floor during his rookie and sophomore seasons. Now as a third-year player, Reaves is on a new $54 million contract with the Lakers and also has the lucrative part-ownership deal with Rigorer to boot. Not bad for a dude who was once nicknamed “Hillbilly.”