Lakers hold on as Doncic leaves injured: what injury does he have?

It was hard to recover from the emotional blow of losing your star player and not knowing what lies ahead with an injury that, before any predictions can be made, will be examined by doctors in the coming hours to determine its true extent.

The Lakers went through a scare: Luka Dončić left Crypto Arena with a muscle strain and did not play the second half of the game in which the Angelenos hosted the Sixers, who came close to stealing it. They seemed to absorb the Slovenian’s absence well, giving leading roles to other members of the squad, but that proved an illusion as the game ended on a knife edge. They barely held off a final push from Nick Nurse’s team, who sensed weakness and tried to exploit it. Even the faces at the final buzzer were not those of complete happiness: their leader is at risk.

The 76ers’ trip to Los Angeles ended in a 119–115 result that felt strange for that reason and others. The home side turned the ball over 22 times, an outrageous figure, and still stood tall against the threat posed by Joel Embiid (35 points) and Tyrese Maxey (26), the best performers on their side of the floor. With Dončić sidelined, Austin Reaves took the biggest step forward: 35 points in 25 minutes, repeatedly punishing the defence whenever he was on court, shooting 12 for 17 on the move. The guard, who was not traded on deadline day, looked especially emotional after sealing the win. LaRavia and Hachimura added 14 points each.

Dončić had scored ten points before he was forced to stop. The moment came in the second quarter, three minutes before half-time. On a play in which he tried to fake past Turkish centre Adem Bona, he felt his left hamstring tighten. Frustrated by his body giving way, he headed straight to the locker room and did not return. JJ Redick later explained that they do not yet know how serious the issue is. The uncertainty will soon be resolved when Luka undergoes the appropriate medical tests.

LeBron James posted a double double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, though he also committed eight turnovers, and operated comfortably in a secondary role. He fully switched on in the closing stretch, when the Lakers wobbled and nearly threw the game away. One of the forwards he has battled for years at the highest level, Paul George, was not there to defend him. The Sixers player has just been suspended for 25 games for doping after, according to him, taking medication to improve his mental health. Without him, Philadelphia suffer even more.

Reaves embraced the role of leading man for the Lakers. Dončić was not the only absentee, just the most important one. The franchise had made a trade on deadline day, Kennard for Vincent, leaving them without either player for this game. Backup centre Hayes, Ayton’s reserve, was suspended for assaulting the Wizards’ mascot. Everything seemed to be going wrong and it almost did. But in their first home game after the East Coast road trip, the win stayed in Los Angeles, lifting them to fourth in the standings.

Other results from the day in the NBA:

• Pistons 117 - Wizards 126
• Magic 118 - Nets 98
• Hawks 121 - Jazz 119
• Raptors 123 - Bulls 107
• Rockets 99 - Hornets 109
• Suns 97 - Warriors 101
• Mavericks 123 - Spurs 135

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