UCLA Basketball: Embattled Bruin-Turned-All-Star Praised By Ex-Teammate

This guard has a ton of respect for this former UCLA star...

Although their respective journeys to the NBA couldn't have been more different for both Russell Westbrook and Austin Reaves, both guards developed a mutual respect during their two years together on the Los Angeles Lakers, from 2021-23.

Westbrook grew up in Los Angeles -- ultimately attending College Basketball's most storied program in UCLA. He parlayed two years in college into being drafted No. 4 Overall in 2008 NBA Draft. Since then, he's gone on to make nine All-Star teams, nine All-NBA teams, and shatter multiple NBA records. Oh -- and the future Hall of Famer also won an MVP Award.

Reaves -- on the other hand -- hails from a tiny town in Arkansas with less than 1,200 people in it. Beginning his career at Wichita State, he finished at Oklahoma. After going undrafted, he latched onto the Lakers' summer league team in 2021. From there, as they say, the rest is history.

During a recent appearance on Showtime's podcast "All The Smoke," hosted by ex-Laker Matt Barnes and former San Antonio Spurs champion small forward Stephen Jackson, Reaves spoke about his relationship with Brodie.

Reaves' rookie season coincided with when Westbrook came back home via a trade with the Washington Wizards. These two probably didn't have a whole lot in common. Reaves was a relative no-name -- whereas Westbrook is among the most famous players on the planet. Yet, as you'll see in the clip above, the two connected famously.

"He's one of the best teammates I've ever had. As a person, you can't get much better...He was always empowering everybody to be better and do better and want more."

- Austin Reaves on Russell Westbrook (via video above)

Reaves spoke with former UCLA Bruin/Los Angeles Laker Matt Barnes about his relationship with Westbrook. There's an undeniable level of love and respect Reaves has for Westbrook. When Reaves got the COVID virus, it was Westbrook who reached out 3-to-4 times over a 7-day span just to see if his teammate needed anything.

"As a teammate, he was really trying to empower everyone to do better and be better."

- Austin Reaves on Russell Westbrook

Westbrook often get a bad rap for being a selfish player, or one with a less-than-ideal basketball I.Q. However, one cannot argue with the career he's had. Statistics aside, you can also make a strong case that Westbrook's influence has rubbed off on Reaves in a profound way.

Not only is Reaves considered to be the proverbial 'third banana' in the strong Reaves-LeBron James-Anthony Davis trio, but he's without a doubt proven to develop into a legitimate NBA basketball player.