Lakers’ Austin Reaves suits up for Game 5 after nine-game layoff
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LOS ANGELES — Guard Austin Reaves rejoined the Los Angeles Lakers’ rotation on Wednesday night, making his first appearance since April 2 in Game 5 of the first-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets.
Reaves, sidelined the past nine contests with strained oblique muscles, came off the bench at Crypto.com Arena. The 27-year-old had missed the Lakers’ final five regular-season games and the opening four postseason matchups before returning to full practice last week. He also participated in pregame warm-ups for Games 3 and 4 in Houston but was held out of both.
The injury occurred during the April 2 game in which NBA scoring leader Luka Doncic strained his right hamstring; Doncic has yet to receive clearance to play. Despite the absence of their top two scorers, Los Angeles claimed the first three games of the series, while Houston forced Wednesday’s contest by winning Game 4.
Reaves averaged 23.3 points, 5.5 assists and 4.7 rebounds in 51 regular-season games. A strained left calf previously sidelined him for 19 straight games from Christmas to mid-February.
The Lakers entered Game 5 holding a 3-1 series lead.
Source: ESPN
