Luka Dončić out vs. Bucks with right ankle sprain
The Lakers will be without their superstar in Luka Dončić on Thursday as he will be out while nursing an ankle sprain.
The Lakers will wrap up their third back-to-back in the last eight days without Luka Dončić, it appears. According to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, Luka will sit out Thursday’s game against the Bucks as he continues to manage a right ankle sprain.
Lakers star Luka Doncic will not play tonight against the Milwaukee Bucks as he continues to manage a sprained right ankle, sources told ESPN. Thursday marks the final game in L.A.'s brutal six games in eight days stretch of the schedule. LAL has gone 3-2 so far.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) March 20, 2025
No matter how it’s sliced up, the Lakers’ recent run of games has been brutal. After a road back-to-back in Milwaukee and Denver, the latter of which Luka sat out, the Lakers have returned home...and played three more games in four days before Thursday.
Luka has featured in all three of those home games and has dazzled during them, leading the Lakers to a trio of wins.
All things considered, Luka and the Lakers have navigated this stretch about as well as could be expected. Worst case scenario, they will finish .500 in these six games, which just about any fan would have taken a week ago.
The focus now will be on the Lakers getting healthy and heading into the stretch run of the season. Having gotten through this week of games, the Lakers can shift their focus to the final weeks of the season. With LeBron James and Rui Hachimura nearing returns in the coming week or so, the Lakers are nearing full strength.
So, while Luka being out on Thursday isn’t ideal, it does bring an end to the toughest stretch of the season for the purple and gold.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.