{"id":164308,"date":"2025-10-26T16:02:20","date_gmt":"2025-10-26T20:02:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=164308"},"modified":"2025-10-26T16:02:20","modified_gmt":"2025-10-26T20:02:20","slug":"lakers-luka-doncic-sidelined-season-opening-masterclasses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/10\/26\/lakers-luka-doncic-sidelined-season-opening-masterclasses\/","title":{"rendered":"Luka Doncic Sidelined After Season-Opening Masterclasses"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Days after making history with consecutive 40-point outings, the Lakers announced some unfortunate news around superstar guard <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/d\/doncilu01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Luka Doncic<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Luka Doncic Sidelined After Season-Opening Masterclasses<\/b><\/h2>\n<h3><b>Doncic to Miss One Week<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ahead of Sunday\u2019s game against the Sacramento Kings, the Lakers revealed that Doncic would miss at least one week with a left finger sprain and lower leg contusion, <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mcten\/status\/1982526828372951192\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">according to ESPN<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. With <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jamesle01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">LeBron James<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> also <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/10\/09\/lebron-james-enters-historic-23rd-season-career-first-injury-opener\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sidelined for weeks due to sciatica<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, it is a major setback for the purple and gold.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_164312\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-164312\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-164312 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/10\/USATSI_27412842_168402037_lowres-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Oct 24, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) passes the ball against Minnesota Timberwolves forward Joan Beringer (19) and guard Jaylen Clark (22) in the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/10\/USATSI_27412842_168402037_lowres-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/10\/USATSI_27412842_168402037_lowres-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/10\/USATSI_27412842_168402037_lowres-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/10\/USATSI_27412842_168402037_lowres-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/10\/USATSI_27412842_168402037_lowres-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/10\/USATSI_27412842_168402037_lowres-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/10\/USATSI_27412842_168402037_lowres-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-164312\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Oct 24, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) passes the ball against Minnesota Timberwolves forward Joan Beringer (19) and guard Jaylen Clark (22) in the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Doncic is coming off a 49-point heater against the Minnesota Timberwolves Saturday night\u2014a game that saw him surpass <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/w\/westje01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jerry West<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for the <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/nba\/story\/_\/id\/46717404\/luka-doncic-sets-lakers-record-92-points-1st-2-games\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">most points in a Laker\u2019s first two games<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of the season. His stellar showings have led to averages of 46 points, 11.5 rebounds and 8.5 assists on .620\/.318\/.793 shooting splits.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With Doncic down for the count, the rest of the team must adopt the \u201cnext man up mentality,\u201d something they are no stranger to given their struggles with health last season.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Lakers play four games over the next week:<br \/>@ SAC<br \/>vs. POR (b2b)<br \/>@ MIN<br \/>@ MEM <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/oteBTaxRBi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/oteBTaxRBi<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/jovanbuha\/status\/1982527568936054959?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 26, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h3><b>The Lakers Who Must Step Up<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Though every Laker in JJ Redick\u2019s rotation will be asked to handle a larger role, there are three who must answer the call immediately.<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><b>Austin Reaves<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As electric as Doncic has been, <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/r\/reaveau01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Austin Reaves<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has put on a show in his own right, scoring 51 points and dishing 20 assists through his first two games. As a member of the Lakers\u2019 big three, the team will need every bucket and dime Reaves can get, especially now with the dynamic duo missing the next few games. The increased role will also give Reaves a chance to show <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/lakeshowlife.com\/austin-reaves-undeniably-improving-biggest-weakness\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">improvement on defense<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, a common criticism of his game over the last few years.<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><b>Rui Hachimura<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another incumbent starter, <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hachiru01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rui Hachimura<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> could hear his number called more often with Doncic out. Hachimura just had an <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hachiru01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">efficient 23-point performance<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> against the Timberwolves, serving as the Lakers\u2019 third-best player next to Doncic and Reaves. His consistency and two-way talent will be vital to the Lakers\u2019 success, especially in a contract year where his future with them is under a microscope.<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><b>Gabe Vincent<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, though his numbers have looked bleak to open the year, <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/v\/vincega01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gabe Vincent<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has some big shoes to fill in Doncic\u2019s absence. The veteran guard showed signs of life in preseason, <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.foxsports.com\/nba\/gabe-vincent-player-stats?category=scoring&amp;seasonType=pre\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">averaging<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> 16.3 points in four games on 47% shooting from the field and 55% from deep. While that early success hasn\u2019t translated in the games that count, Vincent can flip the script this week. That starts by efficiently running the Lakers offense as a skilled shooter and playmaker while setting the tone defensively alongside other <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/iztok_franko\/status\/1982368657490485293\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">key enforcers<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>The Last Word<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Having both superstars out this early is clearly far from ideal, but if the rest of the Lakers want to show off their championship-level habits, now is the time to do so.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u00a9 Kirby Lee-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Days after making history with consecutive 40-point outings, the Lakers announced some unfortunate news around superstar guard Luka Doncic. Luka Doncic Sidelined After Season-Opening Masterclasses Doncic to Miss One Week Ahead of Sunday\u2019s game against the Sacramento Kings, the Lakers revealed that Doncic would miss at least one week with a left finger sprain and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4265,"featured_media":164311,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,26,62,3],"tags":[4556,4921,1133,1749],"class_list":["post-164308","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-lakers","category-nba","category-news","tag-austin-reaves","tag-gabe-vincent","tag-luka-doncic","tag-rui-hachimura"],"modified_by":"Jordan Pagkalinawan","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164308","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4265"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=164308"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164308\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":164315,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164308\/revisions\/164315"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/164311"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=164308"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=164308"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=164308"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}