Austin Reaves reportedly could return to Lakers during first round of playoffs, but Luka Dončić further off

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The Los Angeles Lakers expect to be without star guard Luka Dončić for the remainder of their first-round series with the Houston Rockets, but Austin Reaves has returned to on-court activity and could return if the Lakers are able to extend this matchup, according to ESPN. The Lakers have a 1-0 lead after a 107-98 win in Game 1 on Saturday. Game 2 is set for Tuesday night in L.A.

Dončić suffered a Grade 2 hamstring strain during the Lakers' loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 2 and has been ruled out indefinitely. Prior to the playoffs, Dončić went to Spain to undergo special treatment on his hamstring. He has since rejoined the team, but his timeline to return to play remains unclear.

Reaves went down with a Grade 2 oblique strain in the same game against the Thunder, but is closer to a return than his backcourt mate. Here's more from Shams Charania:

"The sense around the Lakers is that Austin Reaves is actually the one that's further along than Luka Doncic in their respective rehab processes. I am told Austin Reaves has started 1-on-1 on-court work. The next step for him is to continue to go through the progression of 3-on-3, 5-on-5. Remember, early April he had a four-to-six week timetable, so theoretically that puts him on track late in this series, potentially early in the next series."

The Lakers caught a real break with the schedule for their first-round series, which is why there's optimism that Reaves could play against the Rockets. There were two full days off between Games 1 and 2 and will be another full two days off between Games 2 and 3 and Games 4 and 5. Here's a look at the unique schedule, which will stretch into May if it gets to six games.

• Rockets at Lakers, April 21