Austin Reaves off injury report for Wednesday’s game is the clearest official update the Los Angeles Lakers carried into Milwaukee. The Lakers visit the Milwaukee Bucks at 5 p.m. PST at Fiserv Forum, the third stop on a four-game road trip, with Quentin Grimes still listed as questionable because of a sprained right finger. Luka Doncic is not on the report after returning Monday in Atlanta. The 8 a.m. ET edition of the NBA injury report is the latest official document available.
Los Angeles is 10-2 and has won six in a row, including a 124-114 win at the Atlanta Hawks on Monday that Doncic finished with 32 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds while Reaves sat with an illness. Two nights earlier, Reaves scored 43 in the Lakers’ 121-116 win at the Detroit Pistons. Those results are context for the Milwaukee preview, not a second recap of either game. The immediate questions are whether Reaves is back in the rotation after being removed from the report, and whether Grimes can play on a finger injury that has already cost him one game.
The Lakers’ latest official clip from the Atlanta win, above, is a reminder that this trip has already required improvisation. Doncic controlled late possessions Monday after missing the Detroit game. Reaves then missed Atlanta. Wednesday is the first time on the trip that both could be available together, with the important qualifier that Grimes’ status is still officially unresolved.
What the official report does and does not say
The NBA’s Nov. 11 injury report at 8 a.m. ET lists two Lakers. Grimes is questionable with a right finger sprain, the same injury he suffered Sunday in Detroit. Walker Kessler is available with a left finger splint, a designation that matches the way he has played through the issue rather than a new absence. Reaves does not appear on the report at all. NBC Sports and Lakers Wire both noted that he was removed after missing Monday’s game with an illness, and the official document confirms that he is no longer listed.
Being off the report means Reaves is not carrying an official injury designation for tipoff. It is not, by itself, a confirmed starting lineup. Coach JJ Redick’s starting five will be known only when the Lakers take the floor. Ziaire Williams started in Atlanta when Reaves and Grimes were both out. Jake LaRavia and Matisse Thybulle also logged rotation minutes in that game. Those are facts from Monday’s box score, not a prediction that the same group will start in Milwaukee if Reaves returns and Grimes is a game-time decision.
The same official report says the Milwaukee Bucks have not yet submitted. That matters because some previews and the ESPN game file list Tyler Herro as out with a right knee contusion. Until Milwaukee files, that designation is unofficial here. Later injury-report updates scheduled for the afternoon and evening had not been posted as of early Wednesday morning in Pacific Time. If a later official report changes Grimes’ status, or if the Bucks submit a different set of names, those documents should supersede any earlier unofficial list.
Grimes remains the open question
Grimes missed Monday after the finger sprain in Detroit. The Los Angeles Times reported after that game that X-rays were negative and that Redick did not expect a long absence, with a possible return as soon as Wednesday. That was a coach’s outlook on Monday, not a medical clearance, and Wednesday’s official report still has him as questionable. He could be upgraded or downgraded after a pregame workout. Until that happens, the responsible reading is the official one: questionable, right finger sprain.
If Grimes sits again, the Lakers will need the same mix of ballhandling, rebounding and shooting that Redick pointed to after Atlanta, when Collin Sexton scored 18 points with six assists off the bench and Sandro Mamukelashvili had 23 points and eight rebounds. Those performances are available evidence of depth. They are not a reason to assume the same bench explosion will be required, or repeated, if Reaves plays and Grimes is limited or ruled out. Kessler, listed as available, had 21 points and 10 rebounds Monday, his sixth double-double in seven games as reported by the Times.
A 10-2 team meets a 1-10 opponent on a short turnaround
The Bucks are 1-10 and have lost seven consecutive games. Their only win was Oct. 26 against the Indiana Pacers, 110-102. Since then they have lost to the Houston Rockets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors, Boston again and, on Tuesday in New York, the Knicks by a 117-85 final. ESPN’s preview file lists Milwaukee 15th in the Eastern Conference. The Lakers, at 10-2, are listed first in the West. Those standings are the current official picture, not a guarantee of Wednesday’s result.
The rest disparity is straightforward. Los Angeles last played Monday and has had a full day between games. Milwaukee played Tuesday night in New York and turns around at home Wednesday. The Lakers also have a documented scoring punch even when one of their lead guards has been out, but Milwaukee at Fiserv Forum is still a road game on a trip that already required two different emergency combinations. The local television listing is Spectrum Sports Net for the Lakers’ feed.
Projected starting fives that circulate in betting previews should be treated as unofficial. They often assume Reaves will start and that Grimes will sit, and some also treat Herro as a confirmed out. The official Lakers report supports Reaves being available and Grimes being questionable. It does not confirm the rest of either team’s lineup, and it does not confirm Milwaukee’s injuries at all.
The trip is not finished in Milwaukee
Wednesday is the third of four road games. After Fiserv Forum, the Lakers visit the Phoenix Suns on Sunday at 1 p.m. PST, then return home to host the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday, Nov. 17. The Milwaukee game is also the first meeting of a two-game season series; the rematch is scheduled for Jan. 17 in Los Angeles. The immediate question is whether Doncic and Reaves can share the floor again, and whether Grimes can join them.
The useful way to read the report is narrow. Reaves has been cleared from the official list after an illness. Grimes is not cleared. Kessler is available with the splint he has already worn. The Bucks have not submitted. Anything beyond those points, including minutes limits, a starting nod for Reaves, or an upgrade for Grimes before tipoff, is unconfirmed until the Lakers or a later official report say so.
Notes and conflicts
- Reaves. Official 8 a.m. ET report: not listed. Availability is official; a starting assignment is not.
- Grimes. Officially questionable, right finger sprain. Monday comments about a possible Wednesday return remain unconfirmed by the latest report.
- Bucks injuries. Not yet submitted officially. ESPN’s Herro listing is flagged until Milwaukee files.
- Later reports. Afternoon and evening injury-report editions had not been posted at the time of writing.
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