When might Austin Reaves come back from injury for Lakers?

The Los Angeles Lakers are currently up a creek without a paddle. As if Luka Dončić's hamstring injury wasn't devastating enough , they are also dealing with an ill-timed oblique injury to Austin Reaves, their second-best offensive player. Like Dončić, Reaves suffered the injury during a blowout loss to the reigning NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder.

Also like Dončić, unless every party agrees to push a little bit, it could be a while before we see Reaves suit up in purple and gold again. The Lakers, of course, have already ruled out Reaves for the remainder of their regular season that ends this Sunday. What's unclear is exactly how much time Reaves will miss with the NBA playoffs looming next weekend.

If the Lakers and Reaves take their time, he will probably miss around a month of action, at minimum, assuming the Lakers are still alive by then. If both are champing at the bit to be ready for the playoffs, Reaves likely still misses the first few games of Los Angeles' opening postseason series, before entering the latter stages if the series grows competitive and gets extended. This injury situation is a difficult needle to thread because oblique injuries can worsen, and recovery can take even longer, if a player returns too early.

It is feasible that Reaves tries to play through some of the pain, but would that be worth potential long-term damage? The Lakers essentially find themselves balancing their team's near future and their long-term vision, as they aim to build a sustainable NBA title contender around both Dončić and Reaves this summer. It's not a position I envy, that's for sure.