Lakers get positive Luka Doncic injury news after Blazers loss

Luka Doncic didn’t suit up for the Los Angeles Lakers’ Saturday night battle against the Portland Trail Blazers.

According to the Lakers’ injury report, the superstar guard is dealing with a groin injury. Just to confirm that everything is fine, the Lakers ordered an MRI for the All-Star. Fortunately, everything came back clear, according to the head coach, JJ Redick. 

When the head coach was asked about the reason behind Doncic’s absence at the start of the back-to-back set, Redick made it clear it was “more an accumulation” of playing three games in four nights. 

Since Doncic isn’t dealing with a major injury, the Lakers are going to consider him day-to-day for the time being.

The Lakers last saw Doncic on the court as they faced the Charlotte Hornets on January 15. In that matchup, Doncic didn’t have any restrictions, checking in for nearly 36 minutes.

The star guard shot 15-26 from the field, hitting on 6-11 shots from three. Doncic scored 39 points, while dishing out four assists and coming down with three rebounds. The Lakers came up short with a 135-117 loss.

Without Doncic on Saturday, the Lakers didn’t fare much better as a team. Facing the Portland Trail Blazers, the Lakers took on a dominant loss, falling short 132-116. It was Doncic’s first absence since December 23.

Although the star guard has been dealing with some minor ailments throughout the year, the Lakers guard is still having a strong run. In 32 games, Doncic has averaged 33.6 points per game, which is around his career-high. He’s also coming down with 7.7 rebounds per game and passing out 8.7 assists per game.

The Lakers are scheduled for a 9:30 PM ET tip on Sunday night against the Toronto Raptors. Doncic’s status for the matchup remains unclear, as the Lakers haven’t announced statuses just yet.