By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
After trailing by 14 points and losing Luka Doncic due to left leg soreness, the Los Angeles Lakers stormed back in the fourth quarter to lead by 16 and held on to prevail, 119-115, over the Philadelphia 76ers in crypto.com Arena.
Limping off to the locker room in the second quarter, the Slovenian superstar did not return on Thursday. Logging 15:57, he had ten points on 3/10 field goals, four rebounds, and two assists, and was also up to five turnovers.
“He felt some soreness in his hamstring. We didn’t feel like it was good enough for him to come back in. We did a medical. So, we held him out. It’s too early to say if it’s an injury, but he just had a sore hamstring,” head coach JJ Redick shared an update on Doncic in a postgame press conference.
Back home after an eight-game road trip over the last two weeks, the Lakers improved to 31-19 in the 2025-26 NBA Regular Season. Resuming action on Saturday against the Golden State Warriors in crypto.com Arena, the status of Doncic is unclear.
Meanwhile, German reserve Maxi Kleber recorded a game-high +/- of 23 in 26:20 versus the Sixers. The 34-year-old forward netted 2/3 two-pointers en route to four points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals. “Maxi made a number of plays that don’t necessarily show on the boxscore,” commented 41-year-old Redick.
Playing 10:58 on the losing side, Turkish Adem Bona tallied two points and one rebound.