LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic is now expected to make his debut with the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night against the Utah Jazz, coach JJ Redick says.
Doncic hasn’t played since Christmas due to a strained left calf. Redick initially suggested Doncic could play for the Lakers on Saturday against Indiana, but revised his forecast Thursday night before the Lakers hosted the Golden State Warriors.
“Probably more likely Monday,” Redick said. “No commitment made on anything, but probably trending more toward Monday.”
The Lakers acquired the Slovenian superstar last weekend, giving up Anthony Davis in a blockbuster trade with Dallas. Doncic participated in a 5-on-5 “stay-ready” game with teammates and the Lakers’ coaching staff Wednesday, and Redick said Doncic has experienced no setbacks in his recovery from the calf injury.
“All is well. All is positive,” Redick said. “Hopefully we get the word at some point in the next few days that he is going to play. We all want to see him in a Laker uniform.”
Four days after acquiring Doncic, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris from the Mavericks, the Lakers continued their roster overhaul Wednesday night by acquiring 7-foot-2 center Mark Williams from Charlotte in a trade for rookie Dalton Knecht and Cam Reddick.
The league still hadn’t formally approved the trade Thursday night, which meant Redick couldn’t talk about the potential impact of Williams on Los Angeles’ dramatically revamped roster. The Lakers are more focused on getting off to a good start with Doncic, whenever that may happen.
“We want him to feel confident,” Redick said. “We want our medical staff to feel confident. We don’t want to rush anything here. I think we’re all anticipating that. I know the fans are anticipating that, and certainly our players and our coaching staff are anticipating that. I think the one thing we all have in the back of our mind as we’ve shifted and had to recalibrate here in the last week — we’re not going to be able to just snap our fingers and it’s all going to work right away. There’s work to be done once he’s healthy and back in the lineup, and that’s going to be fun.”
