Is Austin Reaves Playing Tonight? (Injury Update, Betting Impact for Rockets vs. Lakers Game 2)

Los Angeles Lakers star guard Austin Reaves has been ruled out for Game 2 of the first round against the Houston Rockets as he continues to recover from an oblique injury that he suffered towards the end of the regular season.

Reaves was injured in the Lakers' April 2 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, and he was ruled out for the next four-to-six weeks with the injury. That puts Reaves in jeopardy of missing the entire first-round series with Houston, unless he's able to return ahead of schedule.

Shams: Austin Reaves (oblique) expected to miss at least 4-6 weeks.
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) April 4, 2026

In addition to Reaves, the Lakers are down Luka Doncic (hamstring) in Game 2 as well. Doncic was injured in the same regular season game, and Lakers head coach J.J. Redick said that he's "out indefinitely" last week.

Despite that, the Lakers still won Game 1 against Houston as a home underdog. The Lakers opened as 5.5-point underdogs in that matchup, but they moved to 2.5-point dogs after Kevin Durant (knee) was ruled out for Houston. Durant is questionable for Game 2, and the Lakers are set as 4.5-point underdogs.

This season, injuries limited Reaves to just 51 games, but he put together a career year when he was on the floor. The star guard averaged 23.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game while shooting 49.0 percent from the field and 36.0 percent from 3.

With Reaves and Doncic out, it's only right to target LeBron James in the prop market as he looks to lead L.A. to a Game 2 win.

Best Lakers Prop Bet vs. Rockets

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

LeBron James OVER 16.5 Rebounds and Assists (-104)

James is still one of the most dangerous players in the NBA.

During the regular season, the four-time champion averaged 10.3 assists and 7.0 rebounds in 11 games with Doncic out of the lineup, and he put up a smooth 21 rebounds and assists in Game 1 with the star guard sidelined.

James is not only the primary scorer for L.A. with Doncic and Reaves injured, but he’s the No. 1 facilitator as well, dishing out 13 assists in Game 1, including eight in the first quarter.

This prop is way too low for James, especially if he’s going to attack the glass at a high level. James averaged just 6.1 rebounds per game in the regular season, but he picked up eight boards (on 13 rebound chances) in Game 1.

After two days off, I think the Hall of Famer is going to stuff the stat sheet again in Game 2.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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