Who Are Austin Reaves’ Parents? Meet The Farm Family Behind The Los Angeles Lakers Guard

Reaves in his Lakers jersey on court© Instagram/@austinreaves12

Austin Reaves went from a small Arkansas town to the richest contract ever for a player who went undrafted. It all started with two parents who both played college basketball and a farm in the middle of nowhere. His mother, Nicole Wilkett, and father, Brian Reaves, raised him and his older brother, Spencer, in a house where sports always came first. Here is a look at the two people behind the Lakers star.

Two Arkansas State players and a 300-acre farm

Austin was born on May 19, 1998, and grew up in Newark, Arkansas, a town with fewer than 1,200 people. His father, Brian, was a point guard at Arkansas State from 1989 to 1993. He played 107 games and finished with a career assist total that still ranks near the top of the school's list. Before that, he led Kokomo High School in Indiana to a state runner-up finish and was team MVP. He later coached at the high school level and spent a short stretch as an assistant at his old college.

His mother, Nicole, was a standout forward at Arkansas State. She averaged 19 points a game in 1991-92, sits among the school's all-time scoring leaders, and was named to the A-State Women's All-50 Year Team in November 2024. Reaves has said both parents taught him to respect coaches, no matter the decision.

The gym or the farm

Life on the farm was simple. Austin did not enjoy working with the cows, so his mom gave him a choice. “Either you get in the gym or you work on the farm,” she told him. He picked the gym. She also played H-O-R-S-E with her sons, and she says she beat them both in her pink fuzzy house shoes.

Austin grew into a huge Kobe Bryant fan and told people he was going to the NBA, though nobody took him seriously. His older brother, Spencer, now a pro in Germany, dragged him to the gym and beat him at everything, which built the fearless streak Austin shows today. “He never got to win anything,” Spencer has said.

Austin still texts his mom first after games, and she is ready with honest criticism and a few kind words. After years of being overlooked, he says the family gave him everything. He has spent some of his new money on them, buying his dad a golf club membership and paying for his mom to take a trip.