With Luka Doncic sidelined due to a Grade 2 left hamstring strain, very few people gave the Los Angeles Lakers a chance to advance out of the first round this postseason. But thanks to players such as Marcus Smart, Rui Hachimura and Luke Kennard having huge performances alongside LeBron James, the Lakers were able to upset the Houston Rockets.
Doncic has remained out as the Lakers have begun their second round series against the Oklahoma City Thunder, but Doncic is extremely proud at how his teammates have stepped up in his absence this postseason.
“Everything. Everybody helped us out,” Doncic told reporters in Oklahoma City. “We proved that we can play. Everybody stepped up, it’s truly amazing to see. So hopefully they continue that.”
James will get a ton of credit for how he has led these Lakers and rightfully so, but without players thriving in different roles, the Lakers would have been sent home by now. And even though he hasn’t been in uniform, Doncic has been on the bench every contest doing anything he can to help his team from the sideline.
“Honestly, just talk to them a little bit more,” Doncic added. “Tell them what I see. But the way they’re playing has been amazing, like I said. Not much I can do, I just try to give them some advice but obviously we have a lot of players that have been in this situation so they know what to do.”
Smart and Kennard, in particular, were huge for the Lakers as ball handlers and creators, helping to ease some of the pressure off James. Of course, Smart has also been the team’s tone setter defensively while Hachimura remains the team’s most consistent outside shooter. Even Bronny James was able to give the team some solid minutes in the first round as well.
And while Doncic is proud of what this team has accomplished so far, he admitted to still being frustrated at suffering the injury right as the Lakers were clicking and playing their best ball of the season.
“Definitely, yeah. I still think that,” Doncic said when asked about the Lakers looking like championship contenders in March. “We had an amazing month of March and the injury came at the worst moment probably for me. I think other guys have stepped up really good, but it was very, very frustrating for me.”
The Lakers will still need more from everyone if they want to keep things competitive against the Thunder while Doncic continues to recover and push to return to the court as soon as he can.
Luka Doncic reveals initial return timeline
Unfortunately for Doncic and the Lakers, it still looks as if he has a ways to go before being able to get back on the court. The superstar revealed that the initial timeline given for his return was eight weeks and he still has yet to be cleared for full contact.
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