The night started badly enough, as the Lakers opened Thursday night’s game against the Thunder by getting outscored 44-21.
Amid the blowout, however, things only got worse as Austin Reaves was seen grabbing at his left side following four early turnovers. After being subbed out, he was seen headed to the locker room, where he presumably sought further treatment for the pain.
“Austin Reaves appears to be grabbing his left side/lower back,” wrote Dave McMenamin on X. “We’ll see if JJ Redick gets him a sub here during this timeout by the Lakers. Reaves has four early turnovers, and LAL trails 25-9. Reaves stayed in after the timeout and actually leads the Lakers with 8 pts, but when he eventually did sub out he went straight back to the locker room for medical evaluation.”
With Marcus Smart already sidelined, Lakers fans were ready to panic on Reaves’ status, especially after how rough he looked in the limited playing time. He’s dealt with several injuries already this season, including a calf strain that caused him to miss 19 games. There have been no reported setbacks, but Austin is at a higher risk for injury right now, given his usage and the totality of minutes played this month alone.
Fortunately, the budding star was able to return to the game, and he quickly rejoined his teammates in the second quarter. While he didn’t look physically limited at all, some fans were pressing the team to sit Reaves and give him some added time to heal before the playoffs.
With less than three minutes to go before halftime, the Thunder already had a 35-point advantage, nearly doubling the Lakers’ score in the first two quarters. With the momentum all on the enemy’s side, Lakers fans pleaded wth JJ Redick to prioritize the playoffs and sit Reaves down to preserve his health and avoid any unnecessary complications. While Reaves may seem fine, there’s no reason for the Lakers to risk his availability by keeping him out there in a game that’s already lost.
In the end, only Reaves knows how he’s feeling, and he made the call today to be there for his team. You can’t blame him for that, especially with the Lakers embroiled in a tough fight to stay in the top three. Still, with the playoffs approaching, there’s a lot at stake right now, and this team needs Austin at 100% to have any chance in the battles to come.
This season, with averages of 23.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game on 48.9% shooting and 35.7% shooting from three, Austin’s play is directly tied to the team’s success, and you could feel his importance as he was heading toward that locker room tonight.
By the looks of it, Austin avoided something serious, but he may not be out of the woods yet. Lingering pain can be a sign of something more, and if he was feeling bad enough to seek treatment mid-game, it suggests that he may be playing through something minor. Either way, it’s something to watch, and you can bet the Lakers will be monitoring this carefully as they prepare for the upcoming playoffs.
