The Los Angeles Lakers will be without one of the NBA's breakout stars this season for the foreseeable future.
Starting guard Austin Reaves is expected to miss one week due to a mild left-calf strain, the team announced on Friday.
Reaves, 27, has missed just three games to this point, while averaging career-highs across the board. His 27.8 points per game rank 11th in the NBA and are second on the Lakers, only to MVP candidate Luka Doncic. Meanwhile, Reaves' 6.7 assists per game rank 20th across the league.
All of which has come while the undrafted guard has averaged a career-high 36.9 minutes per game through 21 appearances — often acting as L.A.'s go-to option throughout the sporadic absences of running mates Doncic and LeBron James.
Reaves is taking a career-high 16.9 field-goal attempts per game and has maintained an impressive 66.5 per cent true shooting through that uptick in scoring volume.
He last played in the Lakers' NBA Cup quarterfinal loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday, logging 15 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in just under 40 minutes of action.
Reaves' strong play has helped Los Angeles to a 17-7 regular-season record, good for fourth place in the Western Conference.
The Lakers return to action on Sunday, visiting the Phoenix Suns to tip off a four-game West Coast road trip.
