Lakers’ Austin Reaves Downgraded Ahead of Pelicans Match

The Los Angeles Lakers will be without their star guard, Austin Reaves, for the second consecutive game.

Reaves has been downgraded from questionable to out ahead of their game on Tuesday against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Austin Reaves won’t return tonight against New Orleans, but the Lakers have upgraded LeBron James to probable. Markieff Morris is out because of an illness.
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) March 4, 2025

Reaves last played on Friday night due to a right calf strain. He continues to be listed as day-to-day. In the meantime, Gabe Vincent and Dalton Knecht are likely to see an increased role for the Lakers on Tuesday.

Reaves joins Markieff Morris, Jordan Goodwin, and Rui Hachimura as out for this contest.

Reaves left Friday's game in the first quarter due to right calf soreness. He played just nine minutes. If all goes well for Reaves, he should be on the court in their next game, a marquee one against the New York Knicks at home.

The 26-year-old has been stellar for the Lakers and has had his best season as a pro. In his fourth season, he is averaging career highs across the board, tallying 19.2 points per game, 4.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.1 steals in 51 games and 34.7 minutes of action.

The Arkansas native has played like the Lakers' best player at times. Head coach JJ Redick has given him the freedom to play how he wants, and he's thrived thus far.

While the Lakers will miss his presence tonight, they don't exactly need it, at least on paper. L.A. will take on a Pelicans team that is focused on getting the No. 1 pick in this year's draft.

New Orleans sits with a 17-44 record, and the Lakers are favored in this matchup with a -9.5 spread.

This will be the Lakers' second game against the Pelicans this season. They escaped with a win in New Orleans earlier in the season and will look to win more comfortably in this one.

The Lakers will look to take advantage of this game ahead as they have a grueling and demanding schedule in the month of March. After this Pelicans game, six of L.A.'s next nine games will be against playoff teams, including the Boston Celtics, Knicks, Denver Nuggets, and Milwaukee Bucks.

Reaves will be needed for those stretches of games, and the expectation is he will be healthy and ready to go by then.

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