At the worst time of the year, injuries have begun to pile up for the Los Angeles Lakers.
After being a good but inconsistent team for most of the season, the Lakers have been one of the hottest teams in the NBA since the beginning of March. After a loss to the Denver Nuggets on March 5, LA won 13 of their next 14, including decisive wins over the New York Knicks, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Houston Rockets (twice).
Unfortunately, the good vibes and confidence were derailed this week when top star Luka Doncic suffered a hamstring injury that will keep him out of at least the last five games of the regular season. The news means L.A. will be without the player who averaged 33.5 points, 7.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists per night for some time. Well, it looks like he’s not the only key player Lakers fans need to worry about.
Austin Reeves is also struggling with injury now?
LA Times Lakers reporter Brad Turner reported on Saturday afternoon, “Austin Reeves got imaging on his obliques on Saturday, and his status for the Lakers vs. Mavericks tomorrow is TBD. Marcus Smart is also TBD with an ankle injury.”
Obviously, both players are listed as being determined, which can be seen as a positive. This is not a diagnosis to be ruled out for several days, weeks or months. But both of these are tough hits at bad times.
Smart has already missed one game this week due to a joint injury. This is an injury that can’t be rushed, and the team needs to make sure he’s ready for the playoffs starting in a couple of weeks. And must be 32 years old. However, Reeves is a bigger concern.
The forward’s obliques are the latest addition to the injury report, and are now worse than Smart’s ankle. Grade 1 strains may cause sidelining for up to three weeks. While a moderate strain or tear could mean up to two months of downtime.
Since Reeves is not listed as out for the Mavericks game, it appears he has a Grade 1 strain. However, this does not rule out a nightmare scenario where the Lakers could be without their top two scorers for the remainder of the season and possibly a game or two in the NBA playoffs.
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