Are the Lakers Done With Doncic Shelved?

The Los Angeles Lakers were one of the hottest teams in the league in the month of March. Los Angeles reeled off a 15-2 mark in the month, averaging 120.6 points per game. The Lakers outscored the opposition by an average of 9.2 points per game. They didn’t gain ground in the Western Conference standings as the Thunder and Spurs were sizzling themselves.

The calendar flipped to April and with it came the cold slap of reality. With it came a blow that could erase any potential hopes of making a run to the NBA Finals this season.

Los Angeles was pummeled on the road by Oklahoma City, 139-96, Thursday night in what was expected to be a showdown between two of the top three teams in the Western Conference. What makes the defeat even worse was the fact that the Lakers lost Luka Doncic to a hamstring injury in the third quarter. He did not return to the game, which was well out of hand when he sustained the injury.

Doncic and the Lakers

Los Angeles had no chance catching Oklahoma City and San Antonio for the top two seeds in the Western Conference. The Lakers entered Friday 50-27 and stood third in the Western Conference standings. They were just one game ahead of Denver with five games remaining in the regular season.

Doncic has put up an average of 33.5 points, 7.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game. He leads the league in scoring and is third in assists per game on the year. Doncic had scored at least 40 points in three straight games before finishing with 12 in the loss to Oklahoma City. He shot just three of 10 from the floor, one of seven from beyond the arc, with four rebounds, seven assists and six turnovers.

Doncic was named Western Conference Player of the Month for his efforts in March. He averaged 37.5 points, eight rebounds and 7.4 assists in 16 games in the month to earn the award.

Potential Impact of Doncic’s Injury

This much is clear. Doncic is done for the rest of the regular season and will miss the final five games. His status for the start of the postseason is murky at best. Shams Charania of ESPN stated that Doncic suffered a Grade 2 strain. That normally takes three to six weeks to heal, which on the short end, would fall during the first round of the postseason.

The fact that Doncic sustained a second injury to the same hamstring this season is concerning. He missed four games in February and made a token appearance in the All-Star Game. If this injury happened a few weeks ago, the Lakers could afford to be cautious and give him more time to rehab. At this point, with as tough as the Western Conference is, they need Doncic back as soon as possible.

Doncic will be ineligible for the MVP award this season as he’ll end up playing 64 games, falling just short of the 65-game threshold set by the league. As it stands, in the short term, it could cost the Lakers at least one, potentially two seed lines. In the long term, it could ensure they have no shot at the Larry O’Brien Trophy this summer.