While there’s still a glimmer of hope that Luka Doncic can return to the Los Angeles Lakers lineup for the first-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets, his backcourt partner, Austin Reaves, has effectively been ruled out.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Lakers are operating under the assumption that Reaves won’t be cleared until at least the first week of May.
“Austin Reaves, he’s out for the majority of the first round series,” Charania told “The Pat McAfee Show” on Monday.
“Most likely, the earliest [return timeline] for him is going to be the first week of May.”
If the Lakers, a +550 underdog against the Rockets, can somehow extend their season until the first week of May, there’s a chance Reaves could be back in the lineup. The second round of the playoffs is slated to get underway around May 3-4.
Austin Reaves Injury Update
Unlike Doncic, who has been in Europe seeking alternative treatment, Reaves has been on the sidelines cheering on his teammates since being diagnosed with an oblique strain. Lakers head coach JJ Redick said this week that it has been a positive for Reaves to “be around the team” while he goes through his rehab.
Doncic is expected to join Reaves on the Lakers bench for Game 1 against the Rockets on Saturday. Over the weekend, Slovenian outlet Ekipa reported that Doncic had undergone a first round of stem-cell therapy for his injured hamstring in Madrid and had made a brief stop in Slovenia to visit his daughters. The report added that Doncic was slated to finish his treatment and rejoin the Lakers by “midweek” this week.
Charania backed up the report on Monday.
“My understanding is he’ll be back in the States on Tuesday, and they’re going to reevaluate him,” he reported.
Lakers vs. Rockets Playoff Series
In Doncic and Reaves’ absence, the onus is on LeBron James to carry the workload for the Lakers against the Rockets — a task Redick feels the 41-year-old can pull off.
After the regular-season finale on Sunday, Redick praised James for an unprecedented 23rd campaign, in which the veteran forward averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds on 51.5% shooting.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s a daily commitment,” Redick said of James’ longevity.
“You probably have to ask him exactly what it was, but I know there are things that he’s cut out of his diet. There are things that he’s done more of, getting his body ready.
“…He had not a good season, not a great season, he had a remarkable season all things considered,” Redick said of his former podcast co-host.
The Lakers, who won the regular-season series against the Rockets, will host Game 1 on Saturday. ESPN’s Iman Shumpert has warned Houston not to underestimate his former teammate, who will have the ball in his hands a lot more amid Doncic’s absence.
“If you have five minutes on the clock at the end of a playoff game, LeBron James can still make the right decisions against whoever,” Shumpert said on Monday.
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