Reaves will be sidelined for at least a month due to a calf injury that could derail what was shaping up to be an All-Star-caliber season.
The Lakers announced Friday that Reaves has been diagnosed with a grade 2 left gastrocnemius strain, which is a moderate injury to the main muscle in the calf, and he will be reevaluated in approximately four weeks.
The 27-year-old guard left Thursday's Christmas Day loss to the Houston Rockets at halftime with renewed calf discomfort and did not return to the game, which ended in a lopsided 119-96 defeat that saw Houston lead by double digits for the entire second half.
This injury is actually a setback from a previous calf strain that Reaves suffered two weeks earlier.
The Lakers had called the first injury mild and it only cost him three games, but this new diagnosis is far more serious and comes at the worst possible time for a team that sits at 19-10 and holds the fourth seed in the Western Conference.
Los Angeles has now lost three straight games and six of their last ten, and they will need to figure out how to right the ship without one of their most important players.
All-Star Dreams Put On Hold
The timing of this injury could not be worse for Reaves and his All-Star aspirations. He had been enjoying a career-best season and was averaging 26.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game while logging over 35 minutes a night.
Those numbers had him firmly in the conversation for his first All-Star selection, and his breakout campaign had become one of the defining storylines of the 2025-26 season.
With All-Star voting concluding on January 14 and the game set for February 15 in Los Angeles, Reaves will miss nearly all of the remaining voting period and the crucial stretch of games that would show his abilities to players and media.
Even if he recovers on schedule, his re-evaluation in late January would give him very little time to make his case, which essentially ends his All-Star campaign before it truly got off the ground.
What's Next for Los Angeles?
The Lakers will now lean even more heavily on Luka Dončić and LeBron James to carry the load offensively during Reaves' absence.
Dončić, who has dealt with his own calf ailments throughout his career, offered his support to Reaves after the Christmas Day game and advised him to take his time recovering because calf injuries can be dangerous if rushed.
Head coach JJ Redick promised an "uncomfortable" practice on Saturday for certain players after the blowout loss to Houston, though he made clear that Reaves was not among those he was frustrated with, praising him publicly for his professionalism and consistency.
The Lakers will play 14 games between now and Reaves' reevaluation date, including tough matchups against some of the NBA's top teams like the Detroit Pistons, San Antonio Spurs, and Denver Nuggets, and they will need to find answers quickly if they hope to maintain their playoff positioning in a crowded Western Conference.