Austin Reaves made Kobe Bryant's nephew cry tears of joy after receiving a birthday message from the Lakers star during the 2023 NBA playoffs
LA Lakers shooting guard Austin Reaves has exploded in popularity over his first two seasons in Hollywood. Since going undrafted in the 2021 NBA draft and subsequently signing a two-way contract with the Lakers, Reaves has developed into arguably LA’s third-best player.
The 25-year-old made a name for himself during the 2023 NBA playoffs, where he was one of the league’s top breakout performers. Along the way, Reaves also made the birthday wish of one prominent LA fan come true, the nephew of late Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.
A few months ago, Shaya Bryant, the sister of Kobe Bryant, reportedly contacted her brother’s former teammate, Matt Barnes. Bryant asked Barnes if he could get Reaves to send a video to her son, Logan, for his 12th birthday as Reaves is his favorite player.
Reaves and the Lakers were participating in the playoffs at the time. However, the Lakers shooting guard still fulfilled Barnes’ request and made the young fans’ birthday a memorable one.
“What’s up Logan, this is Austin. I heard it’s your 12th birthday today and I wanted to reach out and say happy birthday,” Reaves said in the video.
“I hope you enjoyed your day with friends, family, and loved ones, but yeah, I wanted to reach out and say happy birthday.”
When he saw the message, the young child immediately broke down into tears of joy. Watch the heartwarming moment below:
Matt Barnes thanks Austin Reaves for making Kobe Bryant’s nephew’s birthday wish come true
During a recent appearance on the 'All The Smoke' podcast, Barnes made sure to thank Reaves for his kind gesture toward Kobe's nephew. Barnes also told the story of how he reached out to Reaves for the first time following the request of Bryant’s sister:
“So, I hit up Austin, man, it was about three months ago, I even think it was during the playoffs, and Shaya Bryant, who’s Kobe’s sister, hit me up and said that Austin is her son’s favorite player".
“And Shaya was like, ‘Do you know Austin?’ and I was like, ‘No, I don’t know him.’ She said, ‘Please, it’s my son’s birthday.’
“I’m like, ‘S**t, my bad bro, I know it’s the playoffs and you’re focused, but Kobe’s nephew loves you.’ Austin sent him a birthday message and I sent it to Shaya and her son broke down in tears, and I sent it back to him too. I’m like, ‘Bro, that shit meant a lot.’ So Shaya wanted me to personally thank you for that birthday message.”
Reaves then appeared to be humbled by the former Lakers forward’s story:
“Nah, for sure,” Reaves said.
Austin Reaves is such a real one for this 🙏
He gave Kobe’s nephew an unforgettable birthday gift. #RIPKOBE ♾️ pic.twitter.com/ypaCkBP9U4
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