The Los Angeles Lakers are getting ready to host a first-round NBA Playoff series as the home seed for the second consecutive year, securing the No. 4 seed and a matchup with the Houston Rockets. The Lakers are hoping to avoid what happened last year when they had home-court advantage in the first round, as they were comfortably beaten 4-1 by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Rockets have a strong roster that’s proven to be beatable this season. Unfortunately, the Lakers might be going into this matchup with an extreme talent disadvantage. Luka Doncic is nursing a hamstring injury, while Austin Reaves is out with an elbow injury, with both stars being listed as out indefinitely by head coach JJ Redick.
Despite that phrasing, many fans and experts have been optimistic about Doncic and Reaves returning for the Rockets series, or at least during it. Unfortunately, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reports that Doncic and Reaves are expected to miss the entire first round unless they’re able to return toward the end of the series, provided the Lakers can extend it to six or seven games without their star backcourt.
“And as they prepare for it, sources told ESPN they have no expectation of having either Doncic or Reaves back at any point in the first round. But they also have not completely ruled out the possibility of one or both of them becoming available the longer the series lasts.”
Doncic was the NBA’s scoring leader this season, averaging 33.5 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 8.3 assists. Reaves would’ve likely been an All-Star if not for injury struggles, averaging 23.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 5.5 assists in a breakout campaign. Their production is integral to the Lakers’ success, but it seems the franchise will have to hope for a superhuman performance from 41-year-old forward LeBron James, who’ll have to lead the team alone in the absence of his co-stars.
James openly accepted being the Lakers’ third option just a month ago, and now he’ll be thrust back into the spotlight. He’s averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 7.2 assists this season, but he might need to pull out the form we saw during his prime years, where he would average near 30-point triple-doubles to ensure his team could advance into the deeper rounds.
If James can give it his all for one series and somehow extend it to seven games, he might get Doncic and Reaves back in their best shape possible. However, that will be unlikely given the strong frontcourt defense the Rockets will be prepared to throw at James, with coach Ime Udoka recently saying they have five defensive options to cover James if needed.
“Multiple guys. You know Josh will be there, Tari (Eason) will be there, Jabari (Smith Jr.), Kevin (Durant), and Amen (Thompson) as well. We like the length and size we have on the wings; throw different bodies at him. So, outside of Reed (Sheppard) there from a size standpoint, we like a lot of the matchups.”
The series begins on Friday, April 17, at the Crypto.com Arena. The Rockets might be the lower seed, but they’ll be heavy favorites to emerge victorious in this series if Doncic and Reaves wind up missing the entirety of it. Then again, you can never count out LeBron James, even if he’s in year 23 of his career and is 41 years old.
