The Los Angeles Lakers are fighting hard to stay strong in the Western Conference, but they suffered a tough loss to the Thunder on Friday night, bringing their record to 11-8.
The game became even more worrying when Austin Reaves, one of the team’s key players, took a scary fall. Fans expressed concern when he was forced to leave the game for a while.
In the second quarter, Austin Reaves tried to score a layup, but as he was in the air, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Isaiah Hartenstein hit him. Reaves landed hard on his back and felt a lot of pain.
He stayed in to shoot free throws and try a three-pointer but then left for the locker room and didn’t return before halftime. Since Reaves is a key player for the Lakers and ranks third in scoring, his absence was felt badly after he left.
Austin Reaves takes a very nasty fall attacking the rim 💔💔💔 pic.twitter.com/9sUBLJJPuL
— LakeShow Highlights (@LSH_lakeshow) November 30, 2024
The third quarter began with D’Angelo Russell in place of Reaves. When Reaves came back to the bench later, there was a sign of relief. The severity of his injuries is unknown, but his comeback suggests it may not be severe.
LeBron James on Austin Reaves’ scary fall
Many fans were upset by Austin Reaves’ scary fall, believing that Hartenstein should have received a technical foul. But the referees only called it a regular foul, which some fans didn’t agree with.
Reporters asked LeBron James what he thought about it. Even though he saw his teammate almost get hurt, James wasn’t bothered by how physical the game was or the referees’ decision.
LeBron told the media, “No big deal to me honestly. I like it when the game is played that way… I wish it was more regular season games allowed to play that way,”
