WITH his Team USA debut now in the books, Austin Reaves gave credit to one of his heralded NBA teammates for the basketball mentorship on and off the court.
No other than LeBron James.
READ: Anthony Edwards, Cam Johnson power USA past Puerto Rico in tune-up
During the USA's maiden tuneup victory over Puerto Rico on Tuesday (local time), the NBA's all-time leading scorer heaped praise on his fellow Laker star.
Reaves, who had nine points, four rebounds, and four assists in his first-ever national team outing, deflected James' compliments and acknowledged the invaluable mentorship he received from his Lakers teammate and four-time league MVP.
“That's my guy. I've learned a lot from him the past two years. It feels good when he kind of validates that you can actually play. It's been a special two years, and hopefully, we can go win a championship this year," Reaves said.
The 25-year-old winger featured all-postseason long in the Lakers' Western Conference Finals run and was among the squad's top performers with 16.9 points, 4.6 assists, and 4.4 rebounds.
For the American squad, four more exhibition games (Slovenia, Spain, Greece, and Germany) to be played in Spain and the United Arab Emirates remain before they head to Manila for their 2023 Fiba Basketball World Cup opener against New Zealand (Aug. 26) at the Mall of Asia Arena.
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