04/28/26 04:32:00
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04/28 16:30 CDT Austin Reaves hopes to return to Lakers for pivotal Game 5 vs
Rockets after nearly 4 weeks out
Austin Reaves hopes to return to Lakers for pivotal Game 5 vs Rockets after
nearly 4 weeks out
By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) --- Austin Reaves and the Los Angeles Lakers will wait
until game time Wednesday night to determine whether he is ready to return from
nearly four weeks on the sidelines with a strained oblique muscle.
Reaves expressed cautious optimism Tuesday when he spoke to reporters for the
first time since getting hurt April 2 at Oklahoma City. The Lakers'
second-leading scorer was listed as questionable for the past two games of
their first-round playoff series against Houston, but ultimately didn't play
while Los Angeles split the contests to take a 3-1 series lead.
"I want to get back out there as fast as I can," Reaves said at the Lakers'
training complex. "I feel good. Trending in the right direction. I can't wait
to get up (Wednesday) and attack another day."
Lakers coach JJ Redick gave no hints about the team's mindset around Reaves,
saying his availability will be "based on whether he's good to go. We'll talk
through that."
Reaves has tried to stay even-keeled during the second major injury absence of
his otherwise outstanding season. He averaged 23.3 points, 5.5 assists and 4.7
rebounds, but played in just 51 games largely thanks to the oblique injury and
a strained left calf that sidelined him for 19 straight games from Christmas to
February.
Although Reaves finished the game in which he got hurt in Oklahoma City, he
knew the injury was significant because he registered it over his own high pain
tolerance. NBA scoring champion Luka Doncic also left that game with a strained
hamstring, and neither high-scoring guard has played for the Lakers since then.
But their teammates have done much better than many expected without them, and
Reaves is impressed.
"Basically the message from that day forward was that they were going to do
everything as a team to give us an opportunity to come back and play, and
they've done exactly what they said," Reaves said.
LeBron James and his supporting cast won the first three games of its
first-round series and pushed the favored Rockets to the brink of elimination,
even stealing Game 3 in overtime after trailing by six points with 30 seconds
left in regulation.
"It's been a lot of fun, just seeing the determination, the togetherness, and
just the joy of them playing basketball together (and) competing every single
possession," Reaves said. "It's been a lot of fun. Me and Luka talk about it
every time we're watching --- just how hard we're playing, the attention to
detail and the togetherness."
Doncic isn't yet close to a return, but both teams could be without their top
scorers once again in Game 5. Rockets star Kevin Durant has missed three of the
four games in the series with injuries, and he didn't participate in practice
in Houston on Tuesday before the team flew to Los Angeles.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA
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