Source : ABC NEWS
Luka Dončić will miss the rest of the Los Angeles Lakers’ regular season with a grade-two hamstring strain.
Dončić is the NBA’s top scorer and the driving force behind the Lakers’ surge into the third spot in the Western Conference standings.
But he injured his left leg during the Lakers’ blowout 139-96 loss to Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday AEDT.
An MRI exam revealed the severity of the strain and an initial prognosis suggests Dončić will be sidelined indefinitely.
“At this point, at this juncture of the season, it’s the last thing you want to see,” Dončić’s teammate LeBron James said.
“When you have an MVP candidate on your team, the last thing you want to see is somebody go down with a hamstring injury.”
Dončić was injured in the first half against the Thunder but was cleared to return to the game.
He lasted only about four minutes before he spun, stopped and went down on the court in pain, leading to his departure.
The Lakers (50-27 win-loss record) have just five games left before the post-season.
Grade-two hamstring strains sometimes require several weeks of recovery, but Dončić has experience with similar injuries.
He missed four games before the All-Star break with another left hamstring strain but returned to the Lakers line-up after the season resumed.
Dončić is putting up spectacular numbers in his first full season with the Lakers, who acquired the Slovenian star from the Mavericks last season.
He is averaging 33.5 points, 8.3 assists and 7.7 rebounds per game.
The 27-year-old was named the NBA’s Western Conference player of the month for March after racking up 13 consecutive 30-point performances including seven 40-point games.
AP
