LA Lakers star Austin Reaves could make return ahead of third game against Houston Rockets

[p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/austin-reaves/xlCMu1nk/"]Reaves[/a] has been sidelined by an oblique muscle injury since April 4, a devastating late-season blow to a [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/los-angeles-lakers/ngegZ8bg/"]Lakers[/a] team that also saw league-leading scorer [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/doncic-luka/pQ4ZBK0o/"]Luka Doncic[/a] sidelined with a hamstring strain.[/p][p]Nevertheless, with 41-year-old [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/james-lebron/nuIVxFJk/"]LeBron James[/a] leading the charge, the Lakers won the first two games at home in their best-of-seven Western Conference series and will try to press their advantage as the series shifts to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/phoenix-suns/M1Gy2pra/"]Phoenix[/a] [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/basketball/houston-rockets-Sr9PQALP/los-angeles-lakers-ngegZ8bg/?mid=UZFqN2eJ"]on Friday[/a].[/p][p]Reaves, who averaged a career-high 23.3 points per game in the regular season, was upgraded to "questionable" on the Lakers' Thursday evening injury report, and Suns star [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/durant-kevin/pKXcd9rI/"]Kevin Durant[/a] was downgraded to "questionable" with a sprained left ankle.[/p][embed guid="b1f36f80-1ed2-4a85-b070-9fdc248009c1" url="https://x.com/BrettSiegelNBA/status/2047435505445261339?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]Durant, who arrived in [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/houston-rockets/Sr9PQALP/"]Houston[/a] from Phoenix last July as part of a blockbuster seven-team deal, was a late scratch from game one with a bruised knee.[/p][p]He returned for game two but struggled in the second half, scoring just three of his team-high 23 points after the break and finishing with nine turnovers as the Lakers double-teamed him relentlessly.[/p][p]The series was billed as a renewal of the James-Durant rivalry, which stretches back to 2008 and includes three clashes in the NBA Finals.[/p]