Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers went on a tear in the month of March last season as he earned Western Conference Player of the Month honors and the team went 15-2.
Unfortunately, Doncic did not get to see how that stretch would carry over into the playoffs as with just a handful of games to go in the regular season, he suffered a Grade 2 left hamstring strain.
While that kept him out for the Lakers’ entire playoff run, it appears he is now fully healthy as the 27-year-old begins his offseason training, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
Coming off a season in which he led the league in scoring at 33.5 points per game and finished fourth in MVP voting before a Grade 2 left hamstring strain sidelined him for L.A.’s postseason run, Doncic is finally healthy as he begins his offseason training.
He was cleared for basketball activities on May 28 — about 2½ weeks after their series against the Thunder finished, sources close to Doncic told ESPN.
“He’s in full go mode,” one source said.
Doncic did everything he could to make it back for the Lakers during the playoffs, including flying to Spain to get specialized treatment. After the Lakers were eliminated in the second round though, he revealed that he was never that close to returning.
According to this report, it appears Doncic was still a couple weeks out, which means the earliest he could have returned would have been the NBA Finals, if at all.
The important thing is that he is now healthy and training for the upcoming season though. Doncic will not be playing for Slovenia in the FIBA World Cup qualifiers this summer, so he will have plenty of time to get in shape and ramp up for the start of training camp in September.
Considering Doncic has struggled to stay healthy in recent years, having that extra time off should benefit him in 2026-27.
Luka Doncic gives input on what players Lakers need
As the face of the franchise and the player the Lakers will build around for years to come, Doncic has been very involved this offseason as they look to make improvements to compete for a championship. And he recently spoke about the type of players he needs around him in order to have success.
“I think mainly shooters and a big man who can run the pick-and-roll and jump so I can pass to him. If I have shooters, they won’t double me as much and it helps me out,” Doncic said in Spanish.
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