11h59 CEST
03/04/2026
LeBron James is praying for good news after Luka Doncic sustained an injury in the Los Angeles Lakers' loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Lakers went down 139-96 to the Thunder on Thursday, but the biggest blow was the loss of Doncic.
He sustained a hamstring injury and will undergo scans on Friday to establish the seriousness of the issue.
Los Angeles were outscored by 25 points in the time Doncic was off the court. The Slovenian averaged 37.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 7.4 assists across March, with the Lakers going 15-2 to surge up the Western Conference.
Now, James is holding out hope Doncic will be fully fit for the postseason.
"At this point, at this juncture of the season, it's the last thing you want to see," James said, as reported by ESPN.
"When you have an MVP candidate on your team, the last thing you want to see is somebody go down with a hamstring injury.
"So, pray for the best, for sure, and a speedy recovery.
"There's never a time to get comfortable in this league. The only thing we do know is that we won't be in the play-in, so we have that week. But health is wealth."
Final pic.twitter.com/AmHDX9ktf1
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) April 3, 2026
Lakers coach JJ Redick said Doncic received treatment on the issue at halftime but was cleared to continue. He had to go off in the third quarter.
"We checked him out," Redick said.
"He got work done. He was cleared. I mean, again, we're not going to put a player at risk."
The Lakers are 7-6 without Doncic this season, and though they were well beaten in his absence by the Thunder, James stayed upbeat.
"Nothing has changed," James said. "We still will be [together]. Obviously, we'll be tested with the head of the snake [missing].
"But nothing is rattled. It's one game, it's part of the NBA season, it's the defending champions. We get it. We understand."