Shams Charania gives update on Austin Reaves
The Lakers continue to wait on both Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves to heal from their injuries with the NBA playoffs about to start.
Not only will the Los Angeles Lakers continue to be without Luka Doncic when they begin their first-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets on Saturday, but they will also still be without the services of Austin Reaves. Both stars suffered hamstring and oblique strains, respectively, during an April 2 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, and as a result, the team was dealt a major double whammy when it came to its hopes of doing real damage in the playoffs. Doncic reportedly traveled to Spain to receive treatment on his injured hamstring and will be back in Los Angeles on Friday.
Shams Charania of ESPN appeared on "The Pat McAfee Show" and gave an update — sort of — on Reaves, who was initially given an approximate recovery timeline of four to six weeks. "Austin Reaves, he’s out for a majority of this first-round series," Charania said. "Most likely, probably the earliest for him is gonna be that first week of May, so they have a tall task now facing Houston in that first round.
" The first week of May is when the second round of the NBA playoffs begins, so, in all likelihood, L. A. can expect to be without Doncic and Reaves throughout the first round.
Needless to say, that means it will miss a ton of offensive firepower, not to mention playmaking and facilitating. In addition to all the scoring both stars provide, Doncic averaged 8. 3 assists a game this season, while Reaves was at 5.