The Los Angeles Lakers continue to get troublesome news in the injury department with star guard Austin Reaves scheduled to undergo an MRI on his midsection Saturday, multiple outlets reported.
Reaves came away from Thursday’s loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder with discomfort in his rib/oblique area. In the same game, fellow star guard Luka Doncic injured his left hamstring and likely will miss the final five games of the regular season.
“I went back to get a rebound, overextended a little bit and I felt something,” Reaves said after the loss to the Thunder.
While Doncic will not play Sunday on the road against the Dallas Mavericks, Reaves’ playing status is undecided. Los Angeles also could be without guard Marcus Smart (ankle).
The Lakers traveled to Oklahoma City feeling good about their playoff prospects while winning 13 of their previous 14 games to reach third place in the Western Conference. But their night against the Thunder has proved costly and not just because of a 139-96 blowout loss.
Reaves, 27, has averaged a career-best 23.3 points with 4.7 rebounds and 5.5 assists in 51 games (45 starts). He missed 19 consecutive games earlier this season with a calf injury.
In five seasons, all with the Lakers, Reaves has averaged 15.8 points with 3.9 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 331 games (216 starts).
Doncic leads the NBA in scoring at 33.5 points per game and is also averaging 8.3 assists and 7.7 rebounds. Doncic was just named Western Conference Player of the Month for March when he averaged 37.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 2.3 steals.
