The Los Angeles Lakers appear on the verge of getting Austin Reaves back even sooner than expected.
The star guard is trying to play in Game 3 against the Houston Rockets on Friday, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, about three weeks after he went down with an oblique strain. If he can’t play Friday, he will reportedly push for Game 4 on Sunday.
Reaves is currently considered questionable for the game, as is Rockets star Kevin Durant. Luka Dončić remains out indefinitely with a hamstring strain and is not expected to return this series.
Reaves was originally reported to have a 4-6 week timeline to return after sustaining the injury in a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 2. That would add up to an earliest return date of April 30, though these things can be fluid, especially with a muscles like the oblique.
The Lakers had Reaves doing on-court, 3-on-3 work on Tuesday and he has continued to progress since then.
If he does return, it will be boon for a team that has so far done fine without him. It was easy to panic when Reaves and Dončić were both ruled out for the rest of the regular season and part of the playoffs, but the Lakers have taken a 2-0 lead over the Rockets, who have struggled offensively through the first two games.
Game 3 is scheduled for Friday at 8 p.m. in Houston.
Read the full article here