Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside and Los Angeles Lakers forward Luol Deng are in Africa for the NBA Africa Game. Whiteside and Deng have a history together from the time they spent as teammates in Miami from 2014-2016.

Whiteside spoke with Shandel Richardson of the Sun-Sentinal and said he's looking forward to playing against Deng.

“I told him I want to guard him during the game.”

Although the former teammate was playing up his friendly rivalry with Deng, Whiteside also spoke glowingly of the veteran. He told Richardson:

“Luol is one of the best teammates I’ve ever had. Getting to see him is probably one of the most exciting things.”

That's extremely high praise from Whiteside and it's no surprise. Deng is a high character guy who's won the Sportsmanship Award (2007) as well as the J Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award (2014) during his NBA career.

Although Deng's performance has fallen off a cliff on the court, he is still held in high regard around the league. Whiteside's ringing endorsement of his former teammate only furthers this narrative.

The Man from Sudan is heavily involved with Basketball Without Borders, Lost Boys of Sudan, and the World Food Programme, among other charitable organizations.

Whether he's on the court or off it, Deng always seems to bring absolute positivity.

The NBA Africa Game will take place on Saturday in conjunction with Basketball Without Borders. Hopefully, Whiteside will get his chance to guard his former teammate as the two get a chance to reconnect.