Skip to main content

Lakers’ Austin Reaves reveals year he ‘finally stopped hating’ LeBron James

Posted on September 24, 2024 - 7:59 am by

Austin Reaves hilariously revealed when he stopped hating his fellow Lakers teammate LeBron James.

The Los Angeles Lakers have high hopes for the upcoming 2024-25 campaign, and with guys like LeBron James and Austin Reaves leading the way, it’s not hard to see why. Reaves has quickly become one of James’ most trusted teammates with the Lakers, and the pair, alongside Anthony Davis, will likely play a huge role in determing how successful the Lakers are next season.

While Reaves and James are quite friendly with each other now, for much of his life, Reaves was not a fan of James. The talented fourth-year wing hilariously revealed that recently, while also saying his hatred for LeBron subsided when the superstar forward went toe-to-toe with Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant in the NBA Finals.



“I’ve asked LeBron a lot of questions. More than he probably wants me to, to be honest. But when you’re playing with the greatest of all time, how do you not try to pick his brain? I’ve asked him what he thought his greatest year was, not in terms of championships but in terms of peak athleticism, skill, and knowledge. For me, I think his best year was the year they lost to KD and Steph in the Finals. That was the year I finally stopped hating him.” – Austin Reaves, BustaJack Golf

Austin Reaves would like LeBron James even more if they win a title together

Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images    

Not everyone is a fan of James’ greatness, and for a point in time, even his own teammate in Reaves was against him. Of course, that came before the two paired up together in the NBA, and they are now dead set on working together to bring the Larry O’Brien trophy back to Los Angeles.



It’s certainly not going to be easy to do, but the Lakers have a strong collection of talent on their roster, and with supporting guys like Reaves working behind James, they will be a tough team to beat all season long. LeBron and Reaves are already buddies, but if they want to take their relationship to the next level, winning a title together would certainly help.