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The Los Angeles Lakers appeared to have taken another hit to their lineup with only five games remaining before the playoffs tip-off.
The Lakers will be without Austin Reaves for the rest of the regular season as the guard suffered a left oblique muscle injury, ESPN first reported on Saturday. Reaves is reportedly expected to miss 4-6 weeks. The team will have a road game against the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday.
The franchise later announced the injury.
Reaves has emerged as one of the Lakers’ top players since he joined Los Angeles before the 2021-22 season. The former Oklahoma and Wichita State player joined the Lakers as an undrafted free agent. He started to earn starting time during his third season with the franchise.
The 27-year-old has played in 51 games this year. He’s averaging 23.3 points, 5.5 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game. He played 27 minutes in the team’s 139-96 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night.
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Word of Reaves’ season-ending ailment came a day after the team also lost Luka Doncic for the rest of the regular season with a left hamstring strain. Doncic was in the running for the NBA MVP award and scored 600 points in the month of March.
“Our mission, it hasn’t changed,” Lakers head coach J.J. Redick said earlier Saturday. “The rest of these guys and my staff, we’re going after the 3-seed, and we’re going to try to win a playoff series.”
Reaves will be eligible for a lucrative contract extension in the offseason if he declines his player option for the 2026-27 season. Reports indicated that Reaves will likely decline the option.
The Lakers’ final game of the season will come on April 12 against the Utah Jazz.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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