The Los Angeles Lakers’ season went from fairy tale to nightmare in 48 hours. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Saturday that Austin Reaves has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 left oblique muscle injury and will miss the remainder of the regular season.
The timeline? Four to six weeks, which means Reaves will be sidelined to start the playoffs alongside Luka Dončić, who is already out indefinitely with a Grade 2 hamstring strain.
Both injuries occurred on Thursday in Oklahoma City. Los Angeles, riding high after winning 13 of 14 games, got obliterated 139-96 by the Thunder and walked away missing its two leading scorers.
Lakers Fans React to the Devastating Injury Updates
The whiplash has been brutal. Just days ago, the Lakers clinched the Pacific Division and looked like legitimate contenders, their chemistry finally clicking.
Dončić was named Western Conference Player of the Month for March after averaging 37.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 7.4 assists. Reaves was putting up career-best numbers. LeBron James had accepted his role as the third option, and the system was humming.
Then Thursday happened.
Lakers’ Austin Reaves is expected to miss four to six weeks with the Grade 2 oblique injury, sources tell ESPN. Devastating run of injuries to L.A.’s two leading scorers. Reaves and Luka Doncic are expected to be sidelined to begin the NBA playoffs. https://t.co/E2495zVWqH
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 4, 2026
Fans across social media have been processing the devastation.
“The Lakers were rolling in March…damn how things can change. Injuries suck,” wrote Iztok Franko, capturing the deflation in a single sentence.
“All this hits even harder after we had a March that we had. Fu*kkkkkkkk,” added Luka Updates, speaking for every fan who watched the best month of Lakers basketball in years evaporate overnight.
Lakers insider Jovan Buha put the Reaves news in stark terms: “That means he would be out the entire first round.”
Maciek Wooden framed it even more dramatically: “In two days, the Lakers’ season turned from one of the best stories of the season into a state of total panic.”
WarriorsMuse offered a simpler reaction: “Holy sh** what’s going on in LA dawg.”
“I have no words bro we are cursed.” HoodiiBron’s reaction spelled nothing but despair.
I have no words bro we are cursed https://t.co/tukoKJ8xpJ
— ✧.* (@HoodiiBron) April 4, 2026
The Lakers now face five regular-season games without their two top scorers. They have a top-six seed locked up, but the margin for error has vanished.
Marcus Smart remains questionable with an ankle injury. The depth that looked adequate two days ago now looks shaken to the core.
The playoff picture remains unsettled. Los Angeles could face Houston, Denver, or another dangerous opponent in the first round, and whoever it draws will smell blood.
Dončić’s hamstring injury has no firm timeline, and hamstring strains are notoriously tricky to predict. Reaves’ four-to-six-week window could push his return to a potential second-round series, assuming the Lakers survive that long.
JJ Redick will need to conjure magic from a roster that suddenly has none. The 41-year-old James cannot carry this team through a playoff series the way he once might have.
Role players like Rui Hachimura and Jake LaRavia will need to play beyond their experience levels. The margin between a first-round exit and a deep playoff run just got razor-thin.
