The prevailing thought was that Austin Reaves would return to play during this eight-game trip. We are still waiting.
Welcome back to The Times’ Lakers newsletter, where we are freezing out butts off on this East Coast trip. As the team continues to work its way through the Grammy trip, your usual scribe who writes this newsletter, Thuc Nhi Nguyen, is off to Milan to cover the Winter Olympics.
That means you are stuck with me, Broderck Turner, for the next month to discuss the Lakers here. At some point on this eight-game trip, the prevailing thought was that Austin Reaves would return to play after being out with a left calf strain. But we are still waiting for that to happen. The Lakers' last game on this trip is Tuesday at Brooklyn, meaning Reaves will have been out a little over 5 ½-weeks since the injury first occurred during the Christmas Day game against the Houston Rockets. Reaves had been upgraded from out to questionable for the games at Washington on Friday night and the New York Knicks on Sunday, but didn’t play. And for the Nets game Tuesday, the Lakers have listed Reaves as questionable. Lakers coach JJ Redick said Reaves worked out on Saturday but it was not “like a stay-ready game.” Before the Lakers played the Knicks, Redick said Reaves would be a game-time decision. Reaves did not play, missing his 19th straight game. “Yeah, I just would say he's day to day, game to game, however you want to phrase it,” Redick said after the Lakers lost to the Knicks. “ We're hopeful to have him for Tuesday, but he's gotta feel 100% confident.” In many ways, Reaves and the Lakers face a conundrum regarding his health. Reaves always wants to play and the Lakers need him to play, but calf injuries can be tricky and can lead to more serious injuries if they aren’t completely healed. Reaves had missed three games in December with a mild left calf strain, returned to play against the Suns and then went down one game later against the Rockets on Christmas. Reaves was then diagnosed with a Grade 2 left gastrocnemius strain and was given a timeline of four to six weeks before a return to play. Luka Doncic had been out with a calf strain for more than a month when the Lakers traded for him from the Dallas Mavericks last February. 'It's definitely hard with a calf. I've been through that. It's not an easy injury,” Doncic said Sunday night. “So, we just want him to be healthy. If he's not ready to come back, don't come back. But obviously, we'd love to have him out there. We can't wait for his return.' Reaves is averaging career-high in points , assists and rebounds per game. He is shooting 50.7% from the field. His outstanding play means Reaves is in line for a big payday. The Lakers can pay him a maximum deal of five years worth about $241 million. So, yes, Reaves is understandably being cautious. Two of the players people around the NBA said the Lakers had shown some interest in were traded for each other last week, leaving L.A. still searching for the right move to make ... or not to make. Cleveland traded De’Andre Hunter to the Sacramento Kings for Keon Ellis, two wing players that had been attached to the Lakers as possible candidates to be acquired. The NBA trade deadline is Thursday at noon PST. So, the Lakers still have time to do a deal, but people not authorized to speak publicly on the matter say teams have little interest in guards Gabe Vincent and Dalton Knecht, the two most prominent players the Lakers seem to be pushing. The Lakers do have a first-round draft pick they can attach to one of them, but so far appear hesitant to make it part of a deal. So, after LeBron James had 22 points, six assists and five rebounds against the Knicks, he was asked if it was weird to think that game the Lakers played the Knicks could be his last time playing in Madison Square Garden. James, in his 23rd season, has given no indication on when he will retire. “At the end of the day, everything has to come to an end at some point,” James said. “So, no matter what it is, it's going to be like, ‘I'll never play again in Madison Square Garden. I'll never play again in certain arenas. I’ll never play again, period.’ So, at that point it doesn't matter. You're going to always miss it. You're going to miss the game in general. So this one will always have a special place in the journey because it is Madison Square Garden. But yeah, when that time comes, yeah, for sure.” Tuesday at Brooklyn , 4:30 p.m. PST The Lakers end their eight-game trip against a Nets team that has the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference. The Nets have lost eight of their last 10 games. Michael Porter Jr. leads the Nets in scoring, averaging 25.6 points per game. Thursday vs. Philadelphia , 7 p.m. Just as the 76ers started to play better and get healthy, Paul George was suspended 25 games without play for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy. But the 76ers still have All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey, who is averaging 29.2 points per game, and center Joel Embiid. Saturday vs. Golden State , 5:30 p.m. It has become one of the more enjoyable moments to see LeBron James and Warriors All-Star guard Stephen Curry, two of the NBA’s elder statesmen still flourishing, perform against each other. But Curry is dealing with a right knee injury, leaving his status unclear. Bronny James is questionable and rookie forward Adou Thiero is out. Man, this trip has been a cold one. Snow in Washington, D.C. Snow in New York. Snow when I was in Dallas, which meant it took 12 hours to get home to L.A. because of flight cancellations and delays. How about this weather report in New York over the weekend — 20 degrees, but feels like 3. So, hearing from friends back home saying they were on the beach in shorts while I was freezing was just mean. It's a hot topic in our letters basket..... Do you want LeBron James to return to the Lakers next season? Click here to vote in our survey. Hey, it's Thuc Nhi here! Ciao from Milan! I made it here after one aborted landing attempt at the Charles de Gaulle airport, which forced me to sprint through the terminal after customs to catch a 70-minute connection that was more like 30 minutes. My bags didn't catch up, but a maritozzo and a latte from illy made the wait a little sweeter. The Italian cafe chain has a location in the CityLife shopping mall across a park from the Main Press Center and after the traditional first-day Olympic activities of getting my credential validated and getting lost learning the press center layout, I definitely deserved a treat. For more Olympic adventures, you can follow me on Instagram. Despite All-Stars’ efforts, Lakers fade vs. Knicks on anniversary of Luka Doncic deal Lakers star LeBron James named an NBA All-Star for a record 22nd time ‘We want Bronny’: Guard Bronny James shines during Lakers’ ugly loss to Cleveland Cavaliers court raises safety concerns again as Luka Doncic injures leg ‘Like it was yesterday.’ Lakers lose in emotional return to Cleveland for LeBron James Caitlin Clark as NBA analyst? Will she talk about praise from Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves’ return? As always, pass along your thoughts to me at broderick.turner@latimes.com, and please consider subscribing if you like our work!
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