Lakers guard Luka Doncic has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 left hamstring strain after undergoing an MRI, the team announced on Friday (Twitter link via Khobi Price of The California Post).
While the Lakers formally ruled Doncic out for the rest of the regular season, they didn’t give any indication how much time he might miss beyond that. The average return timetable for a Grade 2 hamstring strain is 35 days, tweets Jeff Stotts of In Street Clothes.
If Doncic, who leads the NBA in points per game, is out over a month, he could miss the entire first round of the playoffs. The full postseason schedule has yet to be released, but the first round begins on April 18.
Los Angeles clinched a playoff spot earlier this week and is currently the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. The Lakers will have to lean heavily on Austin Reaves and LeBron James for scoring and play-making as they look to advance in the postseason.
Doncic appeared to tweak his hamstring with about a minute left in the second quarter of Thursday’s game in Oklahoma City, then pulled up lame on a drive in the third quarter. The Lakers were down 38 points at the time and wound up losing by 43.
Although it’s obviously of lesser importance compared to the Lakers being without their best player, there’s an “extraordinary circumstances challenge” in the Collective Bargaining Agreement that could still allow Doncic to qualify for major postseason awards, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. The superstar guard would have to file an application and have it approved by an “independent expert,” but he appears to have a strong case based on the CBA language, Marks notes (via Twitter).
Doncic is currently at 64 appearances and needed to play one more contest to meet the 65-game requirement. However, he missed two games to travel to Slovenia for the birth of his child, and seems to meet the criteria listed in the CBA:
- It was impracticable for the player to play in one or more of the game(s) he missed due to extraordinary circumstances.
- The player would have played in at least 65 regular season games if he had played every game that he missed due to the extraordinary circumstances.
- As a result of the extraordinary circumstances, and taking into account the totality of the circumstances (including whether the player did not play in other regular season games in which he could have played), it would be unjust to exclude the player from award eligibility.
Doncic would have a 24-hour window in which to apply for the challenge, starting at 12:00 pm ET on the final day of the regular season (April 12). His agent Billy Duffy confirmed to Shams Charania of ESPN that he plans to fill out the application on behalf of his client (Twitter link).
If he is granted eligibility by the arbitrator, Doncic is a top contender to make his fifth first-team All-NBA appearance in six years. He averaged 33.5 points, 8.3 assists, 7.7 rebounds and 1.6 steals in 35.8 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .476/.366/.780.
Uh oh!!!
Luka will always disappoint. Yes he can score as well as anyone who’s ever played the sport, especially against teams that can’t match up with him physically (which is most teams but not all). But he’s not a winning player. Gets hurt all the time, and that’s gonna get gradually worse as he gets closer to his 30’s and remains only marginally in shape. Plays zero defense, which limits how teams get built around him and makes it impossible to play with other offense first stars. It’s just really really hard, and I don’t see how that changes.
So we’re just going to forget that the LeLakers basically traded AD for Luka 1:1 and pretend the Mavs got the whole farm. All Luka has to do is outperform AD, who had 20 games played this year, to be worth his contract.
Holy moly this is extreme rose tinted cope LMAO
Not a winning player? Has a career regular season winning percentage of 59%. Take away his rookie season with that bad Dallas roster and it goes up to 62%. Career playoff numbers are 31 ppg, 9 rpg, 8, apg, 1.6 spg. Led an extremely mid Mavs roster to the finals at 25 years old.
You really just went down the hit list of talking points too. Willing to shout from the mountain tops that he doesn’t play defense but unwilling to acknowledge that he was nominated for defensive player of the month in March. Love talking about how chunky he is while not acknowledging how much weight he’s lost and how his weight affects his game 0%. Call him hard to play with while ignoring the successes he’s had with a variety of different players.
There are fair criticisms to be made of Luka. Please don’t just use the same ESPN list of nothings.
@WB. Not to mention, half the Lakers roster has a worse defensive rating. Including LBJ. Reeves, Ayton. Former DPOTY Smart, etc. Nobody mentions this. Bron gets another pass.
Great point
Should have pulled him out of the game when he first started grabbing at his hammy instead of waiting till the third quarter…. Especially being down by so much!
Now he has an excuse for when him and LeBron choke again.
When did he and LeBron choke the last time?
To many times to mention. Is why he went to Miami and then got owned by JJ Barea and Jet Terry. Worst Finals from a superstar ever.
100% on Redick and completely inexcusable. How stupid do you have to be to keep your star player, who has a growing history of lower-body injuries, in the game despite being down 40 at a half and still with a one-game lead over the Nuggets for the #3 seed only two weeks before the start of the playoffs? I’m sure some Redick lovers or defensive types will make excuses for said decision but this is way worse than, say, Thibs leaving his starters in down big with a few minutes left to go.
Hard to dispute, sheagoodbye. Never a recipe for success relying so heavily on one player. I’d like to see a stat about player usage rates and amount of time (compared to the maximum allotted time) superstar players have the ball in their hands. This isn’t the first time in the LeBron-Laker era it’s felt like their version of the playoffs (and some of their delusional fans’ interpretation of it) has come a month or two before the ACTUAL playoffs began. Dunno what else to type about this……other than, sucks to have happened, Luka….get healthy….and LeBron: time to get back in the lab, buddy. LABron Shames.
Same thing I thought your best player having problem and your down 30 in a game take him out. A regular season game doesn’t matter so close to the playoffs.
JJ is def old school leaning with PT and I think that’s a good thing overall on the macro
He’s raw tho and it leads to reaching a bit too much in-season but he tends to learn from his own mistakes quickly
Luka should have been ruled out at half no doubt , I think JJ will absorb this knowledge for the future. Unfortunate,but I have trust in Walter/JJ adapting moving forward. As a fan thats all you can really ask, been a couple decades since we’ve had that level of trust/stability
Fair, and I’m sure plenty of other coaches would’ve done the same in his position. Just a heavy lesson price to pay in the short-term.
I can’t tell what’s more funny. The fact you went back and forth with me early in the year that the Lakers were contenders. Or you’re back and forth with me defending JJ Reddick as a good coach. Neither were true and of your season. It’s over. Hopefully with LeBron’s money the Lakers can become something. But I told you you guys have proven me 100% right again year after year after year
Pre season – were contenders
Start of the season -weeks on player away
Trade deadline- we got our guy(Luke Kannard this season)
Lakers pay Good – were contenders
First round exit – blame anybody not named LeBron and find a scapegoat. Injuries anything. LeBron has no help
Off-season- Rinse and repeat.
Literally bro go look back and forth at our messages back and forth. This is exactly what you did from the off-season to the beginning of the season to the trade deadline to a couple weeks after the trade deadline and now it’s going to be back to the same thing a first round exit. You literally can’t write this. Haha
This fantasy that you have of the Lakers being non contenders is very interesting. The 3 seed in the West who only trail the juggernauts of San Antonio and OKC. Would be the 3 seed in the East only behind the extremely deep rosters of Detroit and Boston.
No, the Lakers are not at all favorites in the playoffs especially without their MVP. But non contenders? I imagine that limits your list of contenders to about 4 teams. Going into the playoffs that have 20 teams and thinking only 4 of them have a chance to win the Finals is not only mathematically ignorant, but has absolutely no historical basis.
I guarantee you didn’t think Indiana was a contender last year. You need to zoom out and let your hatred of LeBron stop clouding very obvious truths.
You can be a 3 seed and not a contender. You could be a 1 seed and not a contender. Do you think the Knicks can win the championship this year. Hell no. Only Laker fans believe You are contenders. Look at the end of the season for all the teams. They’re playing all Eastern conference teams and mostly taking teams. Anytime the Lakers have played an actual playoff team, they completely obliterated every single time with or without Luka. JJ Reddick is Is not a good coach at all. He has no coaching experience and will be out coached in the playoffs every single time because he’s LeBron’s pick. Luka is injury prone and there is no defense around him with LeBron make 54 million. Everything I’m saying is facts. Yet you like your fans. Believe that just because you strung a few regular season games together. You do this every single year. Read my post. Go back the last 4 years and it repeats itself every single year. You always play good because the NBA seems to give you guys a weird schedule towards the end of the year which gives the hope for beating teams like the wizards and the nets and all these tanking teams makes. It seem like the Lakers have won 10 straight good games and that’s just not the facts. As soon as you run up against OKC, Minnesota, Houston or San Antonio, you will lose. Bottom line with or without Luca, you guys are a first or second round exit. With Luca, you may be able to win the first round depending upon the matchup, but you’re definitely losing to the top four teams 4-1.
Now next year when you guys get rid of bronnie, James and LeBron and maybe use that cap space to add some defenders rim runners and shooters around Luca and AR might be a difference story. But nobody but Laker fans actually really believe in the Lakers just like nobody but Knicks fans (sorry AL love you man) Believe the Knicks actually have a chance to win a championship this year
I’ve had to explain this to you so many times lmao. IM NOT A LAKER FAN. Stop saying you guys. I don’t care if the Lakers are successful.
Acting like the playoffs aren’t entirely based on matchup and health is insane. Almost as insane as saying that being the 1 seed in a given conference doesn’t make you a contender.
Knicks aren’t a contender? Until what? Boston gets bounced and Cade strains his hammy? Thats just an absolute impossibility in your mind?
So you think the Knicks can beat OKC? Do you think they can beat San Antonio? Do you think they can beat Houston? If you say yes then you’re lying. You have enough tape on them just like we have enough tape on the Lakers. You absolutely don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re trying to defend the point point that you opened your mouth and we’re wrong on. I was talking to she goodbye. And you joined a grown up conversation. Don’t Make excuses for the Lakers talking about the playoffs or about matchup when I just named four teams that they would have to match up with at least two of those teams they would have to play and they’re not beating any four of those teams. Again, it’s delusional non-laker or Laker fans. Whatever you call yourself but keep on saying BS
If you think there is a 0% chance that the Knicks can beat OKC/Spurs/Rockets (what? Lol) in a 7 game series then you aren’t a fan of basketball. If you think that injuries don’t happen in the playoffs and dramatically change the outcome, then you aren’t a fan of basketball. You’re yapping to yap and your take is that OKC is going to win the finals. COOL! Go back to watching First Take and turning your brain off.
These people go through life acting like LeBron James came into their house in the middle of the night and stole the Christmas tree. Every single one of your posts that has to do with the Lakers is shrouded in this distain for a man you’ve never met and who doesn’t know you exist. You think about Lebron more than any of his fans. It is so damn sad to see people who I genuinely think understand the complexities of both basketball as a sport and the NBA as a league constantly devolve into this hive mind hate brain that has been getting fed since he went to Miami.
Grow up.
Your what’s wrong with society anytime you try to hold somebody accountable or speak facts. It’s called hating in this day and age. Everything I said about LBJ is facts. Still a top 10 player of all time. MVP champion and a lot of other great accomplishments. Doesn’t take away from and the scheming teaming up getting players traded picking his coach playing GM drafting his son who has no business being in the NBA teaming up in Miami. The list goes on and on and on.
As for the Lakers and Knicks again You must not know much about basketball. If you truly think they are contenders Knicks have been exposed. Put kat and Bronson in the pick a role and that’s the automatic bucket. Kat is inconsistent Lakers play no defense. Anytime they play a contender team they get crushed
And wtf are you talking about Houston for? You’re calling Houston a contender while maintaining the belief that KD isn’t a winning player? You ride a fence better than baby J lmao
A little off topic, but with Luka’s injury, Kon Knueppel is almost guaranteed to be the first rookie to lead the league in 3’s
Any other player or non Laker getting said special circumstances treatment, lols.
Based on average missed time and that Luka already suffered a hamstring strain earlier in the season, he is projected to miss the first 2 rounds of the playoffs. Lakers probably a first round exit now
Doncic learned a lesson here. And I hope the coach did too.
Fire the coach who plays a player when losing by 30 in the 2nd half.
But now *everyone* is going to want to play the Lakers in R1. So race to the 6th seed unless Lakers can even hold onto 3.
That’s the match up everyone wanted anyways. OKC, Spurs, Nuggets, no thanks. Lakers, sure.
Typical NBA – keeping an injured guy on the court. Why are they doing this? Is it some kind of manifestation of toughness or what? “MJ played with a flu he’s a legend” bullshіt infecting them?
Keeping injured guys in games, starting injured guys, forcing them into the line-up before their recovery is complete.
I don’t follow much sport, but here in Europe, you don’t ever see professionals perform while injured. Clubs in team sports and individual players in individual sports care a lot about their careers and health, and always make sure they’re 100% fit.