ClutchPoints NBA Insider makes Lakers’ Luka Doncic injury prediction after harsh warning

With the Los Angeles Lakers dealing with significant injuries, there’s no doubt the biggest one is to star Luka Doncic right before the postseason. As the Lakers guard in Doncic deals with a hamstring injury, as he’s going to Europe for special treatment, this insider gives his prediction that comes with a warning to the team.

It can’t be understated how crucial Doncic is to Los Angeles as he has been playing like an MVP candidate, averaging a league-high 33.5 points per game, but now he has a grade two left hamstring strain with little time remaining until the playoffs.

ClutchPoints’ NBA insider Brett Siegel would say that an injury like that, you can’t play on, and warns the team that if they rush back Doncic for the postseason, it could risk a worse injury later.

“You’re out a minimum of 10 to 14 days there before you start getting back in the court for a grade two, you’re talking a minimum of two, two and a half weeks before he even starts on court work, and it’s a playoffs, maybe the Lakers will look to rush him back, but I would not advise that,” Siegel said on Thursday’s edition of Clutch Scoops.

“I’m not a doctor, but if you try to rush back from a significant soft tissue injury like a hamstring injury, a calf injury, as we’ve seen in the playoffs before, you’re risking further injury that could then carry over to next season,” Siegel continued.

Lakers Injuries, Wemby Update, and Warriors Back? | Clutch Scoops w/ @TomerAzarly & @BrettSiegelNBA https://t.co/pX3m4BHgd6

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) April 9, 2026

Could Lakers’ Luka Doncic return in the first round of the playoffs?

In terms of when a return for Doncic would come, Siegel would say that it’s not too realistic to expect Doncic back for the first round of the playoffs.

“I just don’t see it in the first round of the playoffs, even if they went to a game seven with one of these teams, I don’t see any way in which he can return,” Siegel said.

At any rate, the Lakers hope Doncic can make a speedy recovery, and the team holds the ship afloat.

The post ClutchPoints NBA Insider makes Lakers’ Luka Doncic injury prediction after harsh warning appeared first on ClutchPoints.