LeBron James may be one of the greatest basketball players ever, but his swing has become a running joke on the golf course. A late bloomer in the NBA’s favorite offseason pastime, James has drawn plenty of Charles Barkley comparisons- enough to make him think twice about pursuing golf as a retirement hobby. One Laker who doesn’t have that problem? Austin Reaves. His smooth swing has earned him plenty of praise, but even he’s joined the teasing.

Reaves skipped his veteran star and chose Bronny James instead when asked who he’d rather golf with. Unlike his dad, the sophomore seems to have a natural feel for the game, something the Lakers themselves showed off in a recent Mic’d Up YouTube clip. And with that, Reaves made it clear: it’s Bronny over LeBron every time for golf.

“I played with Bronny probably a week ago now, we was on 18.” We didn’t see any social media Easter Eggs of Bronny and AR hanging out at the course together, but if Reaves says so, we believe him. That warranted some flexing to their other teammate. “I sent Bron a picture of me and Bronny out there, and I was like, I got all of my money on Bronny. He told me I was insane, obviously, but, yeah, he’s got a good swing.”

They had to ask what Reaves thought of Bronny’s dad’s swing. Reaves didn’t hold back. “It’s a work in progress.” At least he didn’t compare him to Chuck like Steph Curry did. 

However, Reaves revealed some new developments in LeBron James’ golf adventures. “He told me he got his first birdy the other day and said he was very excited.” If King James‘ pure excitement at discovering a new sport at 40 doesn’t bring a tear to your eye…

He’s a work in progress, which is why Austin won’t join him on the course anytime soon.

Austin Reaves is sticking around for more golf with the James family

The Austin Reaves dilemma was haunting the Lakers for most of the offseason. Analysts and former NBA legends were divided – some wanted the team to trade him for a player better suited to Luka Doncic, others wanted him to stay.

Amid the Lakers’ media frenzy and training camp buzz, Austin Reaves has fueled speculation about his future by declining a four-year, $89.2 million max extension offer this offseason. Instead, he chose to play out the final year of his existing four-year, $53.8 million contract (with a player option for 2026-27), signed in July 2023, aiming for a bigger deal as an unrestricted free agent in 2026.

Reaves was emotional about the extension, which he wanted. His contract’s a little lower than most predicted, but he said, “It’s a business at the end of the day. That doesn’t mean that I don’t want to be in LA. I want to be in LA for my whole career, and hopefully we can make that happen.”

Now that he’s sticking around, he can play golf with Bronny and/or both could fix LeBron’s iambic swing. James knows his limits, too. Because he told the media he would not play for money against Reaves in golf. Reporters asked Reaves what he thought about James claiming, “I’m going to get out there with him…But as far as betting, I’m not going to do that.” AR replied, “That’s bad advice. He’s got enough money to help me with my rent.”

Reaves now has almost $14 million yearly to pay his rent. He can raise the stakes, at least against Bronny. He’ll spare LeBron his dignity for now.

That didn’t stop LeBron James from making tall claims about one day beating Austin Reaves on the greens. Maybe he’s confident because Bronny got this good in golf in only four months. But AR bluntly declared, “Absolutely not. It’s not happening.” If only Austin relents, we’d love to see this sight soon.