Austin Reaves' ascent into stardom has been nothing short of impressive. From being a plucky undrafted guard who impressed during the 2021 Summer League to someone even the most casual NBA fan recognizes, the Los Angeles Lakers guard's star has exploded beyond imagination. And it seems like Reaves is only in the infancy stages of his breakout into all-out celebrity fame, especially when his NBA peers speak so highly of him.

One such peer who recently joined the Reaves lovefest is Andre Iguodala, the four-time champion with the Golden State Warriors. Speaking on the Aarthi and Sriram podcast, Iguodala expressed just how big of a fan he is of the burgeoning Lakers guard especially in light of his solid performances for Team USA in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, loss to Lithuania notwithstanding.

“Is he him? He's Austin Reaves,” Iguodala said as he blurted out a laugh, per The News&Observer. “I like Austin a lot. We've gotten to know each other a little bit. […] He's a lot better than folks thought he was. He's a real basketball player, and that's why I'm a fan of his… No matter what team he's on, he's gonna help you win.”

If there's someone who knows what it takes to help a team win, it's Andre Iguodala, the ultimate glue guy for the Warriors dynasty. Thus, for the Lakers guard to receive this kind of praise from someone who has won everything there is to win in his career is no mean feat. Iguodala has also represented Team USA in the past, so he knows that receiving the call to join a stacked national team is not a privilege just everyone earns.

But beyond his contributions on the court, Austin Reaves is also a delightful person to be with off of it, according to Iguodala. In fact, the four-time champion cannot wait to spend more time with the Lakers guard on the links.

“We're supposed to spend a little more time with each other. He's a big golfer, like really into golf. So when you have a guy in the NBA that's into golf, we're like our own little cult in itself. So he and I will get together and play some golf,” Iguodala added.

Hopefully for them, when they hit each other up on the golf course, they'll be comparing the World Cup gold medals they won 13 years apart.