Luka Doncic is leaving no stone unturned to make a return for the Los Angeles Lakers ahead of their 2026 NBA playoffs second-round series against the OKC Thunder. Doncic has been out since Apr. 2 after sustaining a Grade II hamstring strain when the Lakers faced the Thunder in the regular season.
Ahead of Tuesday’s Game 1, the Lakers have officially ruled him out as expected. However, Doncic shared encouraging images on Instagram on Monday. In the first image, he’s doing deadlifts, showing that he’s recovered from the injury and has begun his rehab. In the second image, Doncic seemingly walked towards the court, carrying an energy drink and his shoes.
Amid reports that Doncic is far from his return and Lakers coach JJ Redick having no official update, fans speculated that the superstar guard might be eyeing a surprise return against the Thunder after his latest stories.
Here’s how fans reacted:
“I sense he’s coming for a sneaky return in Game Two. We just going to see Luka not on the injury report. And then dominate (I’m trying to cope before we get swept.),” one fan said
“he coming back game 3-4 im telling yall. they keeping everything behind close doors. bron gon get us one,” another wrote.
“We’re coming back by game 3 I’m seatedddddddd,” one fan added.
“He was lifting weights too..like ain’t no way he posting this much and NOT come back?” one fan said.
“Hes also doing pretty heavy deadlift on his IG story. Pretty good sign. Hopefully back soon,” another wrote.
Luka Doncic spotted working out ahead of Lakers-Thunder Game 1
Luka Doncic was practicing in Monday’s session ahead of the Lakers-Thunder Game 1 contest on Tuesday. In a video shared by ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, Doncic went through shooting drills from 3-point range. However, it was important to note that it was a light drill. Doncic didn’t run between his attempts from different spots.
Accelerating his intensity would be the next step for Luka Doncic to make progress towards returning. The Lakers have a day’s break between each contest until Game 4, which is on May 12. Doncic would have completed six weeks since he initially sustained the injury.
