Reaves injury: regular season over, playoffs at risk
Lakers also lose Austin Reaves after Luka Doncic: regular season over for the guard and rotations shaken up ahead of the playoffs
The Los Angeles Lakers are dealing with another major setback. After losing Luka Doncic, the franchise has now announced that Austin Reaves will also miss the remainder of the regular season.
The guard suffered a grade 2 strain of his left oblique muscle, an injury that – according to ESPN sources – will sideline him for 4 to 6 weeks. In practical terms: a return is only possible once the playoffs have already started, if recovery goes as planned.
Reaves injury: what happened
The issue surfaced during the heavy loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, when Reaves felt pain after an extended movement:
I went for a rebound, stretched too far and felt something
Austin Reaves
Despite the discomfort, he finished the game with 15 points before undergoing an MRI. In a bizarre twist, the first scan was performed on the wrong area, as head coach JJ Redick jokingly pointed out:
I don’t know where the miscommunication happened, but they scanned the wrong area. It wasn’t on us
JJ Redick
Goal unchanged: Lakers chasing the 3rd seed
Despite the setbacks, JJ Redick made the team’s stance clear:
Our mission doesn’t change. We’re going after the third seed and we’ll try to win a playoff series
JJ Redick
The Lakers (50-27) still hold a valuable position in the standings:
- +1 over the Denver Nuggets
- +2 over the Houston Rockets
- +3 over the Minnesota Timberwolves
With just five games remaining and tiebreakers in their favor, the third seed is still within reach.
LeBron’s “new” role
With both Doncic and Reaves sidelined, LeBron James will need to take back a primary offensive role. In recent weeks, he had reduced his scoring load (15.6 points per game), adapting to a more secondary role.
Now, a shift in mindset is required:
When your role changes, your mental approach changes too. We all have to do a little more
LeBron James
The feeling is clear: the Lakers are entering survival mode. LeBron James will have to raise his level, but he can’t do it alone. A true collective response will be needed – because the schedule won’t wait.