Apr 2, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) walks across the court after a play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
The 2025-26 Los Angeles Lakers’ season was completely altered when they took on the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 2. On that night, not only were the Lakers blown out on the road, but both Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves suffered injuries that would, in Doncic’s case, completely end his season.
Doncic suffered a Grade 2 left hamstring strain in the second half and Lakers coach JJ Redick came under a lot of criticism as L.A. trailed by 31 at the half. Most believed Doncic shouldn’t have returned as he had tweaked that hamstring in the first half. But Doncic put the blame on himself, saying his stubbornness and desire to win pushed him to try and play and admits regretting that decision, via Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated:
Those last few DNPs were haunting. On April 2, almost two weeks before the start of the postseason, Doncic suited up against Oklahoma City. Late in the first half, he tweaked his left hamstring. At halftime, the Lakers trailed by 31. Dončić could have called it a night. “I should have,” he says. He didn’t. Five minutes into the third quarter, Doncic pulled up with a Grade 2 hamstring strain. His season was over. Effectively, Los Angeles’s was finished, too. Lakers coach JJ Redick took heat for the decision to leave Dončić out there. Doncic says any finger-pointing should be directed at him.
“When it comes to my spirit of trying to win, I am just stubborn,” says Doncic. “I felt a little bit in the first half that I should have just stopped. I should have come out. I think we had a team that could compete for the championship. I definitely regret it.”
Doncic is someone who always thinks he has a chance to win, even in the worst of situations, so it isn’t a surprise that he pushed to give it a go. Unfortunately, that decision cost him the season and Redick deserves some criticism as well as sometimes you have to protect the player from himself, especially when he has already tweaked that injury.
Ultimately, that is now in the past and Doncic is completely healthy going into this season and looking to return this franchise back into championship contention. And as long as he is on the court, the Lakers have a chance against anybody.
JJ Redick impressed with Luka Doncic’s conditioning
Doncic continued to put in a ton of work into his body this summer, coming into camp in outstanding shape and even Redick admitted to being impressed with his conditioning.
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