In an attempt to hasten his return, the Los Angeles Lakers star, Luka Doncicwill seek specialized treatment for Grade 2 left hamstring strain in Europeas informed by his agent to ESPN.
Doncic suffered the injury in Thursday’s defeat (2) by 139 to 96 for . The team announced this Friday (3), after an MRI, that the player will be out at least until the end of the regular season.
The usual recovery time for a grade 2 left hamstring strain is one month.
With one week left in the regular season, that would leave the league’s leading scorer (33.5 points per game) and leader in assists (8.3) and steals (1.6) for the Lakers out possibly for the entire first-round playoff series.
The Lakers will also be without Austin Reaves (23.3 points per game, 5.5 assists) until at least the end of , after he suffered a Grade 2 injury to his left oblique. The estimated recovery time is four to six weeksas reported by ESPN.
With four games remaining in the regular season for each team, Los Angeles (50-28) has the same record as Denver, but has an advantage in the tiebreaker criteria to secure third place. If they remain in third, the team will likely face Minnesota in the first round.
However, the Lakers could fall to fourth or even fifth place – which would mean losing home-field advantage – in the final week of the regular season.
The Los Angeles team lost its first game without Reaves, on Sunday (5), against Dallas. Now, the Lakers will face Oklahoma City at home, play Golden State away and close the regular season at home against Phoenix and Utah.
