Luka Doncic Not Expected to Return for Lakers in Round 1
The Los Angeles Lakers began their 2026 NBA playoff campaign with a Game 1 victory over the Houston Rockets on Saturday night.
LeBron James and the Lakers accomplished this feat without both of their top two scorers: Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
Both Doncic and Reaves sustained regular-season ending injuries during an April 2 loss to the reigning-champion Oklahoma City Thunder. Doncic is recovering from a Grade 2 hamstring strain, and Reaves is dealing with a Grade 2 oblique strain.
There was initially some hope that Doncic could return to the court by the end of the Lakers' first-round playoff series against the Rockets, but ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania shut down that hope with a report on Tuesday.
Doncic is not expected to return in the first round, according to Charania.
The latest on the rehabs of Lakers star guards Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves for NBA Today: pic.twitter.com/HA4sfuckrN
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 21, 2026
That being said, a first-round return for Reaves is reportedly still in play. The 27-year-old guard is further along in his rehab process, and is tracking for a late first-round or early second-round return.
Before suffering his hamstring injury, Doncic was performing at an MVP level. The NBA superstar led the league in scoring, averaging 33.5 points per game on 47.6% shooting from the field and 36.6% shooting from behind the 3-point arc. He also averaged 8.3 assists and 7.7 rebounds per game as the Lakers' primary ball handler.
Game 2 of the Lakers' first-round playoff series against the Rockets will tipoff at 10:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Apr 21, 2026, where it first appeared in the Sports section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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This story was originally published April 21, 2026 at 1:18 PM.