Lakers vs Rockets : Can LA Advance Without Luka Doncic & Austin Reaves?

By Shivam KhatwaniApr 15, 2026, 08:12 AM

2 Mins Read

Lakers vs Rockets : Can LA Advance Without Luka Doncic & Austin Reaves?

Los Angeles Lakers head into their Playoff Series against the Houston Rockets severely weakened, with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves ruled out.

The LA Lakers have gone from being the championship contenders to being unlikely to make it past the first round of the playoffs. This happened as Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves suffered injuries and were ruled out towards the end of the regular season campaign.

As per recent reports, the two are out indefinitely, and there seems to be no timeline for their return currently. In a rather unusual occurrence, both Doncic and Reaves were injured during the Lakers’ loss against OKC on April 2nd.

Doncic and Reaves have been the two top scorers for the side this season and have combined to average 56.8 points, 13.8 assists, and 12.4 rebounds per game. Doncic will reportedly return to Los Angeles on Friday after traveling to Spain last week for treatment on his hamstring. On the other hand, Reaves is in Los Angeles, and he shot free throws with several teammates after practice ended Tuesday.

The reported severity of his oblique strain seems likely to keep him out of the entire first-round series. However, the Lakers haven’t put any timeline on either player’s recovery from injuries that frequently require a full month of healing or more.

Can the Lakers manage to see off the Rockets?

The first game of the LA Lakers vs Houston Rockets first round playoffs series will go down this Saturday, April 18th. While LeBron James still has the ability to carry his team on his shoulders, it will be an extremely difficult task against the Rockets led by Kevin Durant.

Rockets finished the regular season 5th in the Eastern Conference, just behind the Lakers, who stand 4th. While there wasn’t a lot to separate the two teams in terms of the rankings, the Los Angeles side is certainly heading into the series short-handed because of Doncic and Reaves being out of contention.

That said, it will be interesting to see how LeBron James steps up in the absence of his two most important teammates. If the Lakers do manage to get past the Rockets in the first round, and if Doncic and Reaves become available from the second round. It is safe to say that they will once again become the favourites to lift the NBA Championship.