What Luka Doncic lacks in speed and athleticism, he makes up for with creativity and deceleration. Much like many European players, the Los Angeles Lakers star manipulates his body and angles to control pace and create space, keeping defenders off balance and gaining an advantage.
Unfortunately, it would appear Doncic’s playing style may be a detriment to his lower extremities. During Saturday’s loss to the LA Clippers, the Slovenian suffered a left calf contusion after getting kneed in the left calf by veteran guard Bogdan Bogdanovic during the first half. The NBA’s scoring leader stayed on the floor for the rest of the half, but his injury flared up during halftime, ruling him out for the rest of the game.
Lakers head coach JJ Redick feels Doncic getting struck in his lower extremities is becoming a recurring issue, one that he plans to protect his star player from.
“Could be just the decel…the way he uses his body,” Redick said on Doncic taking collisions, via The Sporting Tribune’s Carlos Yakimowich.
“We’re talking about looking into ways to potentially protect against these collisions… the mechanisms that keep happening where he’s getting hit.”
“It’s happened a bunch this season,” added Redick.
Luka Doncic Injury Update
To Redick’s point, Doncic suffered a similar injury (lower leg contusion) in late October, which kept him out of action for a week.
Redick confirmed that Doncic is day-to-day with his left calf contusion and won’t be taking the court when the Lakers face the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night.
There is hope that he could return for Thursday’s Christmas Day clash against the Houston Rockets, but the Lakers have no intention to rush back their best player.
How Teams Defend Luka Doncic
Meanwhile, Deandre Ayton, who had the displeasure of being switched onto Doncic — in pick-and-roll situations — when he was a part of other teams, admitted that opponents get extra physical with the Slovenian to try and stop him.
“You feel very tired, and your ligaments and muscles are just really worn out,” Ayton told reporters of Doncic getting harassed by defenders.
“Especially a guy like Luka. You imagine the defense, in the scene, two or three guys every night. You know, they’re throwing different coverages at him like blitzes and, you know, just even being physical to disrupt his play. And, you know, things like that could happen.”
Amid Luka Doncic’s injury, the good news for the Lakers is that both Austin Reaves and Ayton are expected to return for Tuesday’s contest against the Suns.
The Lakers (19-8) enter the game against the Suns (15-13) as +5.5 underdogs due to Doncic’s injury. The contest will mark the third clash against the West rivals this month alone, after they split the series at one game apiece. The games have been particularly fierce due to the bad blood between LeBron James and Dillon Brooks.
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