Luka Doncic injury update: Lakers star returns after hard fall vs. Timberwolves

After leaving Wednesday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves with one minute to go in the first half, a new update emerged on Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic. He was reaching toward his back as he headed to the locker room just before halftime, but was on the court and returned to start the second half.

Doncic fell hard on a foul late in the first half and eventually headed toward the sideline after trying to go. He walked off the court gingerly as the Lakers trailed the Timberwolves heading into halftime.

As halftime came to a close, the Lakers were still waiting to see if Doncic would be able to return, TNT’s Allie LaForce said. However, he emerged from the hallway with tape on his back and took the court to begin the second half.

“I was waiting for Luka to come out and time was expiring at the half,” LaForce said on the broadcast as the second half began. “I looked over at J.J. Redick and LeBron James and they were staring down the hallway to see if he was coming out. So I don’t think anyone really knew his status until just now. The team said he is available to return – obviously, he’s out there on the court. He has tape underneath his jersey on his lower back, hip area.

At the time of his departure, Luka Doncic had 12 points and four assists as the Lakers trailed by double-digits. It was a win-or-go home game for Los Angeles, which faced a 3-1 deficit in the first round of the playoffs at Crypto.com Arena.

The Timberwolves dominated the first game of the series, 117-95, but the Lakers rallied to tie things up in a 94-85 victory in Game 2 in Minnesota. That tied things up at 1-1 heading back to Los Angeles, but the Timberwolves didn’t back down as they came away with 116-104 and 116-113 victories in Games 3 and 4.

As a result, the Lakers had to win Wednesday night to keep their season alive. The pressure continued to mount, as well, and Redick changed the starting lineup to try and provide a spark. Jaxson Hayes was moved out of the starting lineup as Dorian Finney-Smith replaced him.

However, Redick also faced criticism for keeping his entire starting five on the floor for the fourth quarter. A reporter asked him about that decision and whether Redick might lean on his assistants more to get more players involved, and the first-year Lakers coach made his response clear.

“Are you saying that because I’m inexperienced and that was an inexperienced decision that I made?” Redick said. “You think I don’t talk to my assistants about substitutions every single timeout?”

The reporter then said he thought coaches lean on their situations in those spots. Redick said he does, as well, and walked out of the press conference after the response.

“As do I, every single time,” Redick said. “That’s a weird assumption.”