Lakers fans can breathe a sigh of relief – Austin Reaves looks ready to go against the Wizards on Tuesday night after a scary moment in Sunday’s game against the Clippers.
The 25-year-old guard limped off the court with just under four minutes left after banging knees while going for a rebound. It was a tense moment for a team that really can’t afford to lose him right now.
The Lakers fell to their cross-town rivals at the new Intuit Dome, making it their 18th loss this season. While the Clippers had three players score over 20 points each, LeBron James was left carrying most of the scoring load for the Lakers once again.
Reaves has been absolutely crushing it lately. Just last week, he dropped a career-high 38 points against the Nets, earning major props from LeBron himself.
Since D’Angelo Russell got traded to Brooklyn, Reaves has stepped up big time as the team’s playmaker. He’s putting up some seriously impressive numbers – 22.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 8.9 assists per game. Plus, he’s shooting lights out with 44.7% from the field and 40.6% from three-point range.
Those are All-Star caliber stats, folks.
Coach JJ Redick didn’t seem too worried about the knee incident after the game. Reaves himself confirmed he took a knock but suggested it wasn’t anything major.
It’s been a rollercoaster season for the Lakers, who haven’t managed to string together three straight wins since mid-December. Still, betting odds show they’re favored to make the playoffs.
That’s pretty remarkable considering how up-and-down they’ve been. But with Reaves playing the best basketball of his career – and apparently dodging a bullet with this knee scare – maybe things are looking up.
The real test will come Tuesday night when they host the Wizards. All eyes will be on Reaves to see if he’s really good to go.
