Austin Reaves displays high basketball IQ with G.O.A.T answer

In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Reaves endorsed the idea of the Los Angeles Lakers putting up a statue of LeBron James. But then he went a step further, calling James "the greatest basketball player ever."

"He came to L.A. at a time when they weren't having much success," Reaves explained. "In two, three years, he put a banner in the rafters. In my opinion, he's the greatest player to ever to play the game."

Regardless of how Reaves truly feels about James' historical place, calling his teammate the G.O.A.T. is an example of something Reaves excels at: Making the correct basketball play. When Reaves spots up behind the three-point line, he should want James to hit him with a pass without a moment of hesitation when he wonders, "Does this guy think Michael Jordan is better than me?"

It's a big difference from last year, when Reaves went viral for a clip of James haranguing the rookie for not knowing what to do when he checked into the game during a blowout.

In a sign of his progress, Reaves is even featured in the new trailer for NBA 2K24. Not as early in the trailer as James appears, of course, but he gets a solid few seconds to himself (starting at the 1:12 mark in the video below).

He is not, however, famous enough to date Taylor Swift, despite some unfounded internet speculation.

When asked where the T-Swift rumors came from, Reaves told the "Full Send" podcast, "Everybody that knows me knows I don't go out. So everyone was like, the funniest part of all this is Austin being at a bar."

But also Reaves has covered his bases, just in case he ever gets traded to the Charlotte Hornets or runs into Jordan on the golf course. The same week as his SI interview, Reaves said that Jordan was his goat.

Will James feel betrayed? We think he'll understand that the true greats always want to keep their options open.