Luka Doncic headlines Lakers injury report for Game 4 vs. Thunder originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Los Angeles Lakers will be without Luka Doncic once again when they host the Oklahoma City Thunder to keep the Western Conference semifinals series alive. The Thunder are up 3-0, and it seems now that only a miracle could save LeBron James & Co. on Monday.
The injury report for Monday’s game is out. Doncic, who has not featured for a single game for the Lakers this postseason, will keep up with the status. This means the responsibility falls on LeBron’s shoulders to keep his team alive in the competition. Meanwhile, there is no injury concern associated with any of the Lakers’ key players for this game.
The Lakers somehow managed to get past the Houston Rockets in the first round, but the Thunder are proving to be a big challenge. Playing without their regular season MVP, who averaged 30+ points, 5+ rebounds and 5+ assists, was always going to be difficult and losing three games on the bounce highlighted what the Lakers had been missing all along.
In Doncic’s absence, the Thunder could force LeBron to give up the ball and they are actually the best team in the NBA to choke the opponent offensively when they are without their primary ball handler.
MORE: Luka Doncic jokes about Jarred Vanderbilt’s dislocated finger
What happened to Luka Doncic? Why he is not playing for Lakers in playoffs
On April 2, Luka Doncic suffered a Grade 2 left hamstring strain during the game against the Thunder. He has not played since.
Doncic even went to Spain for PRP therapy and rehabilitation to accelerate recovery. The injury needs a recovery time of at least eight weeks, meaning Doncic won’t be available until late May or mid-June. But the way things are going, it doesn’t look like there is a chance we will be able to see Doncic in the playoffs this season.
As things stand, while Doncic hasn’t been ruled out officially, his return this season remains unlikely.
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