The Los Angeles Lakers will be heading into Sunday night’s game against the Houston Rockets with a commanding 3-0 lead. While the success they have enjoyed with their current rotation has been promising, a recent update on Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic may be cause for more excitement.
Along with Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves’ prolonged absence has been one of the biggest talking points for the Lakers going into the postseason. However, with recent reports suggesting the guard could be nearing his return, JJ Redick addressed Reaves’ availability for Game 4 during his pre-game press conference.
“Same [situation] as Friday,” Redick stated, bluntly. “We’ll go through his pre-game shooting. That is in a normal time, and we’ll go from there.”
Austin Reaves, who averaged 23.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 5.5 assists in the regular season, was upgraded to questionable ahead of Game 4. Since the press conference, however, Reaves has been downgraded to out, suggesting the Lakers may not wish to re-aggravate his injury by bringing him back ahead of schedule.
Meanwhile, Redick also provided an optimistic update on Doncic, according to the OC Register’s Benjamin Royer.
“He just continues to kind of do some stuff on the court,” Redick shared. “Was able to move a little bit today on the court, which, you know, most of the stuff has been standstill. So he’s progressing, but no update on any timeline or anything like that.”
Doncic underwent special treatment in Spain to hasten his recovery from a hamstring injury. Although the timeline was promising, it has become evident that the Lakers are being cautious with ramping up his activity.
It was abundantly clear that Doncic would not be available for the first-round series. Still, his progress is remarkable, and could be promising if the Lakers can sweep the Rockets on Sunday night, effectively earning a longer break before the second round begins. Considering that he led the league in scoring this season (33.5 PG), the Lakers will look forward to having Doncic back in the rotation soon.
As promising as the situation is for the Purple and Gold going into this matchup, the same cannot be said for the Rockets, who have officially ruled out Kevin Durant for Game 4.
Rockets head coach Ime Udoka spoke on Kevin Durant‘s ankle injury and the superstar’s disappointment with the situation in his pre-game press conference, stating:
“Playing the minutes that he did and the competitor that he is and the commitment that he’s made to the team with a lot of guys being in and out this year, it’s unfortunate for us and him that he’s missing this time of year.”
“It’s hard, no doubt, for a guy that wants to play and play as much as he does, to be out for this season is very tough. Feel bad for him, and our team in general.”
Despite being 37, Durant averaged 26.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4.8 rebounds per game in the regular season, highlighting his impact on the team’s performance. Unfortunately, Kevin Durant’s availability this postseason has been largely hampered by his ankle injury.
After missing the first game, many hoped his availability in Game 2 would improve the team’s chances. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case, as the forward’s errors in the second half eventually enabled the Purple and Gold to secure the victory at home.
Although Durant’s absence for Game 3 would have led to a dip in Houston’s performance, the team was surprisingly more competitive. Given the reports about the Rockets’ fading internal chemistry, the team’s improved performance in Durant’s absence only fuels the rumors.
Therefore, for all intents and purposes, both teams will be heading into Game 4 with virtually no changes to their rosters. While this could see the Lakers in a better position to close out the series on the road, the Rockets have demonstrated that they can thrive even without their superstar on the floor.
