LOS ANGELES – Luka Doncic missed the Los Angeles Lakers’ last four games before NBA All-Star Weekend due to a hamstring injury. Doncic initially suffered the injury during the first half of the Lakers’ win against the Philadelphia 76ers back on Feb. 5, and was ultimately ruled out for the second half.
Prior to the Lakers’ game against the Dallas Mavericks right before NBA All-Star Weekend, head coach JJ Redick remained optimistic that Luka Doncic could return from the injury following the break. And during his All-Star media availability session on Saturday, Doncic acknowledged that he was feeling good in terms of making his return to the court and suiting up for the All-Star Game on Sunday.
“I feel pretty good. I’ve been working to get back,” Doncic said. “Obviously I wanted to play the last game, but it wasn’t possible. I was almost there. So I think I will play a little bit.”
Doncic was not named to the All-Star Team last season, breaking a streak of five consecutive selections. This will be Doncic’s first time being an All-Star as a member of the Lakers. He will be a part of Team World in the NBA’s new format featuring three teams in a round-robin tournament.
During the first half of the regular season, Doncic has been one of the top candidates for the NBA’s MVP Award. Doncic has never won the award before, with his highest finish coming during the 2023-24, when he last led the league in scoring, at No. 3 in the voting.
Doncic is currently leading the league in scoring for the second time in his career at 32.8 points. He’s appeared in 42 games at a little over 35 minutes per game. In addition to his points, he’s averaging 7.8 rebounds, 8.6 assists and 1.5 steals with splits of 47.3 percent shooting from the field, 34.5 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 78.1 percent shooting from the free-throw line. Doncic is also leading the NBA in free-throw attempts at 10.9 per game.
Following the All-Star break, Doncic’s first opportunity to make his return to the Lakers’ lineup is on Feb. 20 against the LA Clippers.
