Austin Reaves Cleared To Return For Lakers

Lakers guard Austin Reaves has been upgraded to available for Tuesday’s game against Phoenix, the team confirmed in its latest injury report.

Reaves hasn’t played since December 10 due to a left calf strain. Although his absence has spanned nearly two weeks, the standout guard has only missed three games during that time, with the Lakers playing a very light schedule in mid-December. The team went 2-1 during his absence.

Reaves, 27, is in the midst of a career year. In his first 21 games (all starts), he averaged 27.8 points, 6.7 assists, and 5.6 rebounds in 36.9 minutes per night, with an excellent .503/.369/.875 shooting line. He and Luka Doncic, who is averaging a league-best 34.1 points per game, have been the NBA’s most productive backcourt when healthy, though Doncic isn’t currently healthy, having been ruled out for Tuesday’s game due to a lower left leg contusion.

Although he has had a pair of three-game injury absences so far in 2025/26, Reaves is still well positioned to reach the 65-game requirement for end-of-season award eligibility, and it’s not out of the question that he could earn consideration for certain honors – including Most Improved Player – if he continues to perform like he has in the first two months of the season.

Reaves is also playing for his next contract. He’ll almost certainly turn down his $14.9MM player option for 2026/27 and sign a new deal as an unrestricted free agent next summer. Our Rory Maher explored what that contract might look like in the latest edition of the Hoops Rumors mailbag.