{"id":51511,"date":"2026-04-13T17:22:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T21:22:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/doncic-expected-back-in-la-friday-after-european-treatment-playoff-return-unclear\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T17:22:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T21:22:15","slug":"doncic-expected-back-in-la-friday-after-european-treatment-playoff-return-unclear","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/doncic-expected-back-in-la-friday-after-european-treatment-playoff-return-unclear\/","title":{"rendered":"Doncic Expected Back in LA Friday After European Treatment, Playoff Return Unclear"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n

Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic is scheduled to fly back to Los Angeles this Friday following specialized medical treatment in Europe for his hamstring injury, according to an ESPN report released Monday. However, team officials have not indicated when the star player might be cleared to return to the court.<\/p>

The 27-year-old basketball star traveled to Spain last week to undergo multiple injection treatments for a Grade 2 left hamstring strain he suffered during the team’s 139-96 defeat against the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 2.<\/p>

Following an MRI examination the day after the injury occurred, Lakers management announced that Doncic would be sidelined for at least the rest of the regular season. The organization has remained silent about his recovery progress since that initial statement.<\/p>

Medical experts typically expect Grade 2 hamstring strains to require approximately one month of recovery time. This timeline could potentially sideline the NBA’s top scorer, who averages 33.5 points per game, along with Los Angeles’ leader in both assists (8.3) and steals (1.6), for the entire opening round of playoff competition.<\/p>

The Lakers, who earned the fourth seed in the Western Conference, are scheduled to begin their first-round playoff matchup this Saturday when they face the fifth-seeded Houston Rockets.<\/p>

Adding to the team’s injury concerns, Austin Reaves remains unavailable after suffering a Grade 2 left oblique strain. The guard, who contributes 23.3 points and 5.5 assists per game, is projected to miss four to six weeks of action.<\/p>

Despite losing both key players, Los Angeles managed to close out the regular season with a 3-2 record following Doncic and Reaves’ injuries.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lakers superstar Luka Doncic is scheduled to fly back to Los Angeles on Friday following a week of specialized treatment in Spain for his hamstring injury. The team has not provided updates on when the league’s leading scorer might return to the court for the playoffs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":51510,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[836],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51511","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1776115335243.jpg?fit=450%2C300&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbtNqq-doP","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":47655,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/lakers-doncic-heads-to-europe-for-hamstring-treatment\/","url_meta":{"origin":51511,"position":0},"title":"Lakers’ Doncic Heads to Europe for Hamstring Treatment","author":"Admin","date":"April 6, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Lakers superstar Luka Doncic will travel to Europe for specialized treatment of his Grade 2 hamstring injury in hopes of returning sooner than expected. The injury could sideline the league's leading scorer for the entire first round of playoffs.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1775453027270.jpg?fit=450%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":47004,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/lakers-star-luka-doncic-out-for-regular-season-with-hamstring-injury\/","url_meta":{"origin":51511,"position":1},"title":"Lakers Star Luka Doncic Out for Regular Season with Hamstring Injury","author":"Admin","date":"April 3, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The NBA's leading scorer Luka Doncic will sit out the remainder of the Los Angeles Lakers' regular season due to a Grade 2 left hamstring strain. The injury occurred during Thursday's loss to Oklahoma City, with an MRI confirming the severity of the strain.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1775255905542.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1775255905542.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1775255905542.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1775255905542.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":52095,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/lakers-top-scorers-doncic-reaves-remain-sidelined-for-playoff-opener\/","url_meta":{"origin":51511,"position":2},"title":"Lakers’ Top Scorers Doncic, Reaves Remain Sidelined for Playoff Opener","author":"Admin","date":"April 14, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The Los Angeles Lakers will begin their playoff series against Houston without their leading scorers Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, both recovering from injuries. Coach JJ Redick confirmed both players remain out indefinitely with no timeline for return.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1776202692491.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1776202692491.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1776202692491.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1776202692491.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":62833,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/doncic-calls-lakers-playoff-absence-very-frustrating-while-recovering-from-injury\/","url_meta":{"origin":51511,"position":3},"title":"Doncic Calls Lakers Playoff Absence ‘Very Frustrating’ While Recovering from Injury","author":"Admin","date":"May 6, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic traveled to Spain for specialized treatment to help heal his hamstring injury that has kept him out since early April. The six-time All-Star expressed deep frustration watching his team's playoff struggles from the sidelines, including their Game 1 loss to Oklahoma City.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778105269150.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778105269150.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778105269150.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778105269150.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":47339,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/lakers-star-austin-reaves-sidelined-for-regular-season-with-oblique-injury\/","url_meta":{"origin":51511,"position":4},"title":"Lakers Star Austin Reaves Sidelined for Regular Season with Oblique Injury","author":"Admin","date":"April 4, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves will miss the remainder of the regular season due to a Grade 2 oblique muscle injury. The injury occurred during Thursday's game against Oklahoma City, dealing a significant blow to the Lakers' playoff preparations.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1775342193260.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1775342193260.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1775342193260.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1775342193260.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":61800,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/lakers-star-doncic-sidelined-for-game-1-against-thunder-due-to-hamstring-injury\/","url_meta":{"origin":51511,"position":5},"title":"Lakers Star Doncic Sidelined for Game 1 Against Thunder Due to Hamstring Injury","author":"Admin","date":"May 4, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Los Angeles Lakers will begin their second-round playoff series against Oklahoma City Thunder without their top scorer Luka Doncic on Tuesday. The superstar remains out with a left hamstring strain that has kept him from all playoff games so far this season.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1777947801722.jpg?fit=450%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51511","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51511"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51511\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51510"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}