Luka Doncic suffered a bruised left leg during the first half of the Los Angeles Lakers’ 103-88 loss to the LA Clippers on Saturday and did not return after halftime.
The Lakers star entered the game leading the NBA with a career-high 35.2 points per game, along with averages of 9.1 assists, 8.8 rebounds and 1.7 steals.
He endured a tough first half against the Clippers, finishing with 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting, including 1-of-6 three-pointers, while adding five rebounds, two assists and four turnovers. Los Angeles trailed 54-39 at the break.
Lakers head coach JJ Redick said Doncic was unable to continue after suffering an injury before halftime.
“I saw him limping towards the end of the first half. He came up to me at halftime and told me he couldn’t go,” Redick said.
Doncic left the Intuit Dome without speaking to reporters, and Redick said he did not yet have clarity on the severity of the injury or a timetable for his return.
“I have no further information,” he said.
While Doncic missed three games in late October due to a bruised lower left leg, the two incidents are believed to be unrelated.
The Lakers were already without three starters, with Austin Reaves sidelined with a left calf issue, Deandre Ayton injured in his left elbow and Rui Hachimura missing the game with a right groin issue.
LeBron James said the team had to adapt despite the growing absences.
“Whatever the circumstances, it’s always the next guy,” James said. “We are all professionals. We all have to stay ready.
“So obviously the circumstances are very difficult for our ball club tonight, but I think we played extremely hard, we followed our keys. We just failed.”
James scored a season-high 36 points on 15-of-28 shooting as the Lakers briefly cut a 22-point third-quarter deficit to seven early in the fourth quarter before fading late.
Los Angeles struggled offensively outside of James, shooting 19 of 60 overall and just 3 of 31 from three-point range.
“We just didn’t make any shots tonight,” Lakers forward Jake LaRavia said. “I mean, that’s really what it was. We were 6 of 38 from 3 as a team, we missed seven free throws.
“It’s hard to win basketball games like that. I thought we played really, really hard. But yeah, the shots just weren’t falling.”
Redick said he hopes Reaves and Ayton can return for Tuesday’s away game against the Phoenix Suns, while Hachimura is expected to miss between three and five days.
The defeat drops the Lakers to 19-8, fourth in the Western Conference. They will next face Phoenix before hosting the Houston Rockets on Christmas Day.
“The worst thing in sports is injuries,” James said. “You control the controllables, but what we have there, no matter who is in the uniform, we have to go out and execute at the fastest pace possible and on the other end we have to defend on a rope and help each other out.”
