Jake LaRavia and Angel Reese (Photos via Imagn Images)
Jake LaRavia’s arrival in Los Angeles should have been a simple basketball story—young shooter joins the Lakers, brings a fresh spark to a team hungry for another title run. Instead, LaRavia’s name has been splashed across headlines for all the wrong reasons, and his first days in purple and gold have been anything but smooth. The Lakers, who just inked the 23-year-old forward to a two-year, $12 million deal, were hoping to add some much-needed shooting depth as they look to build a new era around LeBron James and their latest blockbuster addition, Luka Doncic. LaRavia, who bounced between Memphis and Sacramento last season, has always been known for his sweet shooting stroke—he’s nailed over 37 percent of his threes in his young career and was even better last season, torching nets at a 42 percent clip from deep. On the court, he’s exactly the kind of role player who could thrive next to two superstars. Off the court, though, things have gotten messy fast.

No sooner had the ink dried on his Lakers contract than the internet did what it does best—digging up old tweets and dragging them into the harsh light of social media. This time, the spotlight landed on a handful of posts about Angel Reese, the WNBA star who’s become a household name in her own right. The tweets weren’t just awkward or out of touch—they were downright ugly, and fans wasted no time calling LaRavia out. Suddenly, his basketball stats were an afterthought. All anyone wanted to talk about was what he’d said online and what it meant for his future in Los Angeles.

LaRavia tried to put out the fire, claiming his account had been hacked when the posts first surfaced back in May. But the damage was done, and the tweets are still up for the world to see. Whether anyone buys the hacking story is another matter entirely. For Lakers fans, who are desperate for any sign of hope after a rocky few seasons, this is not the kind of drama they wanted to see from a new signing. For LaRavia, it’s a nightmare start in the city of stars—a place where every move is magnified and every misstep is headline news.

It’s a tough break for a young player who should be celebrating the biggest opportunity of his career. Instead of being welcomed as a key piece in L.A.’s championship puzzle, LaRavia finds himself on the defensive, trying to explain away a social media mess that just won’t go away. The Lakers, meanwhile, have a decision to make—stand by their new man, or cut ties before the season even begins. Either way, Jake LaRavia’s start in Los Angeles has been anything but the fairytale he, and the Lakers, were hoping for.

LaRavia would claim his account was hacked after sharing the posts in May, but they’re still there.

Anyhoo, peep this below:

Social media had a lot to say about Jake’s posts about Angel Reese.

This commenter wrote: “This is who the Lakers signed BTW”

“OMFG bro ain’t no way this dude our big off season move,” a comment read.

“😭😭😭 yea lakers ain’t winning s**t next season,” someone claimed.

“Who tf would hack “Jake LaRavia”,” a user asked.

“did he not delete the tweets when he got the account back😭😭,” someone else wondered.

“he didn’t delete his tweets from when he was hacked???” another chimed in.

Jake LaRavia Set To Team Up With A Good Friend

LeBron James and Jake LaRavia (Image Credit: Getty Images)

LaRavia could be an important player for the Lakers next season, especially given that they’ve lost Dorian Finney-Smith. He will help them space the floor, as he’s great moving without the ball and a dependable outlet from the perimeter.

The move to L.A. also sees him pair up with Austin Reaves, with whom he’s good friends. The two sharpshooters often work out together and share the same agent.

As for the tweets, this can’t be his real account, right? It has fewer than 500 followers.