The NBA will resume tonight after the All-Star break. There’s only one game slated to be played and that is between the Lakers and the Hornets. Lakers fans have been waiting to see Luka Doncic in his full glory in purple and gold. Ahead of the Hornets game, JJ Redick has provided a crucial update on the superstar’s injury status and minute restrictions.
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Luka has been reeling from a calf injury since late December. While Luka was nursing himself back to health, he was traded to the Lakers. Although he has played two games for his new team, he is averaging only 23.5 minutes per contest.
Redick believes that Luka has fully recovered from his injury and is ready to play without minute restrictions. He stated that the All-Star break has done wonders for his recovery process. The head coach told reporters on Tuesday, “He’ll be fine. That extra five-six days of All-Star break was good for him. His minutes will be up tomorrow. And I don’t think that there’s going to be any sort of restrictions going forward.”
JJ Redick’s response when asked about Luka Doncic’s ramp-up after being on a minutes restriction pre-ASB: “He’ll be fine…His minutes will be up tomorrow. And I don’t think that there’s going to be any restriction going forward.”
— Khobi Price (@khobi_price) February 19, 2025
The Slovenian started in both games for the Lakers but was taken out early to ensure his calf injury doesn’t get worse. After two outings, he is averaging 15 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4 assists while shooting over 40% from the field. These numbers aren’t doing justice to what Luka is capable of doing on the floor.
At the same time, it was important that he makes a full recovery before going all in on the floor. The 25-year-old also understood the severity of his injury and gave himself enough time to recover for the first time in his career. He said, “For the first time, I took my time. Get it to heal 100%. The previous 3 times, I just wanted to get back on the court playing basketball and not really be healthy 100%. This time, I just took normal amount of time to get back to 100%.”
The Lakers can put on a show at the Crypto.com Arena tonight as both of their superstars are well rested. While Luka has been sidelined for the most part for nearly two months, LeBron James is also well-rested after backing out from the All-Star Games at the last minute. A lineup with these two at their full strength will be a treat to watch.
Additionally, there’s also an irony at play as the Lakers will face the Hornets after the ASG break and the Dalton Knecht trade being rescinded. It will be interesting to see if Mark Williams, who is listed as probable, matches up against the team that refused to take him on after all but guaranteeing him a spot on the roster.
