Lakers 'elevate' Work For Playoffs With Luka Doncic And Austin Reaves Injured

The elephant successful nan room for the Lakers arsenic they participate nan playoffs has been, and will proceed to be, nan position of their starting backcourt, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.

Both are retired because of injuries — Doncic pinch a people 2 near hamstring strain and Reaves pinch a people 2 near oblique strain — and neither is expected to play successful nan best-of-seven, first-round playoff bid against nan Houston Rockets that originates Saturday astatine 5:30 p.m. astatine Crypto.com Arena.

After believe Friday, coach JJ Redick was speedy to opportunity “there’s not” erstwhile asked astir an update connected Doncic and Reaves.

After Doncic and Reaves were injured connected April 2 astatine Oklahoma City, nan Lakers said some would beryllium retired until nan extremity of nan regular season. According to group not authorized to speak connected nan matter, some are expected to beryllium retired 4 to six weeks.

Doncic went to Spain to get treatment, and Reaves has been moving diligently successful L.A., pinch nan dream that they tin return sooner.

The Lakers miss their mixed output of 56.8 points, 13.8 assists and 12.4 rebounds per game. Doncic led nan NBA successful scoring (33.5) and was 3rd successful assists (8.3); he was 2nd connected nan Lakers successful rebounding (7.7).

During nan week of practice, Reaves was astir his teammates and seen shooting aft a fewer practices. He appeared to beryllium successful bully spirits. Doncic was expected to beryllium backmost by Friday.

“We emotion having Austin present and we’re gladsome he is successful a position to do his return-to-play [work], nevertheless agelong it takes pinch us,” Redick said. “Excited to get Luka backmost and beryllium astir nan group. Austin and I talk conscionable astir each time astir different things. So he’s … conscionable being a portion of this. …

“The mindset for our squad and for those 2 guys, for illustration we’re gonna effort to make this play arsenic agelong arsenic imaginable truthful that we tin get those guys backmost astatine immoderate point. We don’t cognize what that is, and that’s conscionable our job. And their occupation is to do everything they tin to beryllium successful a position to travel backmost astatine immoderate point. It whitethorn not work, but that’s what we’re trying to do.”

The taxable of nan Lakers’ week astatine believe was to “elevate” their work.

Yes, they won’t person Doncic and Reaves, but that didn’t mean nan Lakers couldn’t activity harder.

When they worked connected box-out drills successful mentation for nan measurement nan Rockets onslaught nan violative boards, nan Lakers went hard. When they watched movie and had believe sessions, nan Lakers worked pinch a purpose.

“The connection we’ve utilized each week is ‘elevate.’ I deliberation that’s what it is,” Redick said. “We each cognize nan playoffs are different. They’re harder. There’s nary easy matchups, and you person to beryllium capable to elevate your play. But beyond that, it’s elevating your recovery, your attraction to detail, your preparation.

“I talked astir that pinch my coaches arsenic we started this week connected Monday morning. It was an disconnected time for nan guys, but we were successful location for six hours and we’ve each collectively gotta elevate. And peculiarly erstwhile you’re missing 2 of your apical guys, portion of elevating is elevating each different and nan belief that nan group arsenic a full tin beryllium great.”

The Rockets are a reliable and rugged squad that is bully connected defense and astatine rebounding.

They classed 4th successful nan NBA successful points fixed up (110.0) and sixth successful opponents’ field-goal percent (46.0). They were tops successful rebounding (48.1) and violative rebounds (15.0).

That has nan Lakers’ attraction and is why they worked truthful difficult during practice.

“It’s been great. The level of attraction and attraction to detail, nan communication, everything has been elevated,” guardant Jarred Vanderbilt said. “We’ve sewage a batch of guys that’s been to nan playoffs and cognize what it takes.

“Like you said, everything elevates astir this clip and having a seasoned group that’s benignant of been location and had a sensation of nan playoffs, we each cognize what it takes to triumph games successful nan playoffs. It’s everybody going retired and doing their occupation and paying attraction to nan crippled plan.”