Already down star forward LeBron James, the Los Angeles Lakers were dealt another injury blow on Sunday, as star guard Luka Doncic was ruled out for some time due to finger and leg injuries.
Doncic isn’t expected to be sidelined for too long — roughly one week was the provided timeline for re-evaluation — but that could end up being several games in which the Lakers have to survive without their two best players.
Lakers insider Jovan Buha gave his thoughts on when Doncic could return to action for Los Angeles.
“It’s a combination of the finger sprain and the leg contusion,” Buha said. “I gotta be careful what I say because sometimes I’ll get aggregated out of context, but I think it’s the combination that is keeping him out. I think if it was one, maybe he’s available to go a little bit earlier, but as I reported earlier in the Luka stream, I’m hearing that the one-week timetable was intentional in that it’s going to be pretty close to that.
“Now, the question is gonna be, technically one week from today, that covers four games, and then they play Miami on that fifth game next Sunday, and then they have a back-to-back against Portland again, going to Portland on Monday. So, I don’t yet have clarity as to is it going to be four games, five games, six games.
“I have a tough time seeing him miss a week and then immediately going into a back-to-back. Maybe that happens, but everything we’ve seen from the Lakers has been cautious to the point of overcautious or overcaution up to this point with all of their players and injuries, so I have a hard time just seeing them being like, ‘Oh, well Luka missed the week. Let’s just throw him into a back-to-back.’
“So, my assumption as of right now is he’s gonna miss at least five of the next six, potentially all six, and then maybe come back that middle of the following week, but depends on how he fares over the next few days, obviously.”
To clarify, it seems like Buha included the game the Lakers just played against the Sacramento Kings in his calculations. That was the first game Doncic missed. Here’s a look at L.A.’s upcoming schedule, which includes some of the games Buha mentioned:
- vs. Portland Trail Blazers (Monday, Oct. 27)
- at Minnesota Timberwolves (Wednesday, Oct. 29)
- at Memphis Grizzlies (Friday, Oct. 31)
- vs. Miami Heat (Sunday, Nov. 2)
- at Portland Trail Blazers (Monday, Nov. 3)
Buha seems to think that Doncic could miss all of the games listed, but as he noted, that’s just one possible scenario.
The problem for the Lakers is that with James and Doncic both out, the team risks falling into an early hole in the Western Conference standings. The solution to that problem may be fifth-year guard Austin Reaves.
Reaves just put together a mammoth performance against the Kings to get the Lakers an important win in their first game without Doncic this season. L.A. came away with a 127-120 win on the road behind 51 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists from Reaves.
Newcomer Deandre Ayton also had a nice game, as he finished with 22 points and 15 boards while making an impact on the defensive end.
If the Lakers, currently 2-1, can keep their record around the .500 mark until they get at least one of their top stars back, they’ll have to feel pretty good about that outcome. Some more strong play from guys like Reaves and Ayton would certainly go a long way toward helping the cause.
Moreover, if members of L.A.’s supporting cast can play above expectations during this upcoming stretch with James and Doncic out, optimism will only grow among fans regarding what the team could do when fully healthy. A lethal supporting cast around James and Doncic this season would raise the ceiling significantly for the Purple and Gold.
