More trouble for Luka Doncic! Well, he did not play the way he would have wanted last night against the Jazz. Although his team was victorious, the Slovenian Sensation struggled to find his groove and finished with only 15 points. Sure enough, fans believed he would turn things around in tonight’s clash against the Wolves. However, the back-to-back games have only brought him more bad luck as he was forced to leave mid-way after an unfortunate incident.
It was during the closing minutes of the second quarter that Doncic ran inside the paint to catch a pass from Kyrie. As he took a pound dribble to analyse his next move, the back of his knee collided with Jaden McDaniels’ knee, who was closing in to defend him. Hurt because of the impact, he turned the ball over and the Wolves ran a fast break. However, Luka looked in visible agony as he hopped around on one leg holding the back of his right knee.
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Luka Doncic just hobbled into the locker room. He was grabbing the back of his right leg near the knee when he asked to check out.
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) October 30, 2024
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Surprisingly, the play continued and Doncic, who had not moved from his spot since the collision, even got an easy layup as the ball returned to him moments later. And the Mavs had to intentionally foul to finally stop the play so that the superstar could check out from the game. Sure enough, a hobbling Luka headed straight to the locker room and did not return for the rest of the quarter.
Even while he was on his way to the back, the Slovenian star was having a hard time putting weight on his right leg and used his teammate’s support to walk. But he would not stay out for too long.
Luka Doncic returns despite injury scare but his struggles continue
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While the fans feared for Luka’s health, they got a huge sigh of relief moments later when he returned to the floor ahead of the third quarter and participated in shoot around. Yes, his knee was still bothering him as he was constantly stretching it out during the break. However, he was not hurt enough to sit out the entire game. And he checked back in to help his team in the second half.
Unfortunately, his shooting struggles continued even after his return as Luka had only 17 points in over thirty minutes of play with almost a quarter to spare. And just like the last game where he shot 22.7% from the field, he was having a tough time finding the back of the net even tonight, making only seven of his nineteen shot attempts. Amid his struggles, Irving kept the Mavs afloat as he put up 26 points in just thirty minutes and kept the lead alive for his team. Hopefully, Luka will be able to shake off this bad stretch and return to being the superstar he is in the next game.