According to James Foglio of sportscasting.com on Saturday, Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Austin Reaves of Newark, Arkansas will be out a minimum of one month with a left calf strain. Reaves has been an integral part of the Lakers franchise this season. So far, he had a 51 point performance in a 127-120 Lakers win over the Sacramento Kings on October 26. Then, Reaves had the first buzzer beater of the 2025-26 NBA season in a 116-115 Lakers win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on October 29.
Reaves reportedly initially injured his calf on December 10 in a 132-119 Lakers loss to the San Antonio Spurs. He returned to action on December 23 in a 132-108 Lakers loss to the Phoenix Suns, and left at halftime on Christmas Day in a 119-96 Lakers loss to the Houston Rockets.
It has been a struggle defensively for Reaves in recent games. In the month of December he had been a -42 in seven contests. Remember, this is a Lakers team that has the fourth best record in the Western Conference at 20 wins and 10 losses for a winning percentage of .667.
One may be surprised it is Reaves, who is second in Lakers’s scoring this season behind Luka Doncic, and not the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, LeBron James. Reaves is averaging 26.6 points per game. He also has 6.3 assists per game, 5.2 rebounds per game, and one steal per game. Reaves has a field goal percentage of .507, three point percentage of .365, and a free throw percentage of .873. The NBA’s leading scorer is Doncic, who has 33.7 points per game.
