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By Cole Sullivan
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After sustaining a hamstring injury on April 2, Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic was ruled out for the remainder of the regular season, leaving him one game short of the NBA’s 65-game threshold required for eligibility for regular-season awards.
Doncic appealed the decision, noting that two of the games he missed earlier in the season came while he traveled back to Slovenia for the birth of his second child.
On Thursday, the NBA and NBPA finalized their ruling and granted him those two games back, pushing him over the 65-game mark and making him eligible for awards such as All-NBA — an honor he’s considered a strong candidate for after leading the league in scoring with 33.5 points per game this season.
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Doncic expressed his gratitude for the decision by releasing a public statement shortly after it was announced.
“I am grateful to the NBPA for advocating on my behalf and to the NBA for their fair decision,” Doncic said.
“It was so important to me to be present for the birth of my daughter in December, and I appreciate Mark, Jeanie, Rob, JJ, and the entire Lakers organization for fully supporting me and allowing me to travel to be there. This season has been so special to me because of what my teammates and I have been able to accomplish, and I am honored to have the opportunity to be considered for the league’s end-of-season awards.”
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Unfortunately for Doncic, he is expected to miss the first round of the postseason alongside Austin Reaves, who was also injured during the April 2 matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
That leaves the Lakers extremely short-handed heading into a first-round series against the Houston Rockets, which will have to be led by 41-year-old LeBron James.
If Los Angeles can somehow get out of the first round and advance, there is a strong possibility that Doncic — and even Reaves — could return.
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