The Los Angeles Lakers fell to a 119-110 loss against the reigning NBA champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, on Monday night. Luka Doncic, arguably their best player this season, missed the game due to a mild hamstring strain. He is set to miss his third straight game tonight as his teammates gear up to play the San Antonio Spurs at home. As the Lakers remain in the hunt for a playoff spot, they’ve devised a new strategy to ensure their star man is in peak shape when it matters most.

Senior ESPN NBA reporter Dave McMenamin offered the latest update regarding Doncic’s latest injury niggle.

“Luka is out tonight; he’s going to miss his third straight game with that hamstring injury. Now the Lakers have been encouraged that it’s only a mild hamstring strain, but Luka’s never dealt with a hamstring injury before in his eight-year NBA career, so this is a bit of a different rehab for him,” McMenamin said.

Coach Redick and his support staff will look to manage Doncic’s minutes in practice and in games. Doncic already missed a few games last month due to ankle and groin issues. They will look to tweak his recovery process in the build-up to All-Star weekend.

“I’m told he ran yesterday. He plans on 5-on-5 with contact today, and so Thursday against his former team, the Mavericks, is not out of the question,” the reporter added.

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The Lakers superstar has appeared in 42 games this season, putting up MVP numbers week in and week out. He averages 32.8 points per game (1st in the league), 8.6 assists and 7.8 rebounds this season.

The 26-year-old remains in contention for the NBA MVP title race along with the likes of OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic, Detroit Pistons’ Cade Cunningham and San Antonio Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama.

Will Luka Doncic Play in the NBA All-Star Game?

After three missed games in February already, the Lakers faithful will welcome this latest Doncic injury update with a sigh of relief. Coach Redick also stressed that this remains a minor setback for the Slovenian. However, his status for this weekend’s All-Star Game is yet to be confirmed.

“He certainly has some motivation to get back on the court in time to play in the All-Star Game this weekend. He was the leading vote-getter; it’s the first time this has happened in his career, but that’s TBD,” McMenamin added while speaking to ESPN.

If things go as planned and Doncic features on Thursday against the Mavericks, then he will definitely play on the weekend. However, if he doesn’t and the Lakers opt to play it safe and give him additional recovery time, we might not see him at the All-Star game in Inglewood.

‘Baby Bird’ is still logging roughly 36–37 minutes per game this season. He is still functioning as the primary scoring and playmaking engine in an old‑school Lakers ball‑dominant system.

After investing so much in his move to Los Angeles, the franchise can’t afford to sideline its centrepiece—especially with the Western Conference race picking up pace and playoff seeding on the line.