Luka Doncic injury: Mavs star’s MRI on thigh reportedly comes back clean

DALLAS — There was some good news for the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday after losing their star player to an injury the night before.

Luka Doncic left Wednesday’s game at the New Orleans Pelicans in the third quarter due to a thigh injury. He was expected to have an MRI the next day.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Thursday that Doncic’s MRI on his thigh came back clean and that he could return as soon as he recovers from the discomfort.

During Wednesday’s game, Doncic was visibly uncomfortable and could be seen grabbing his left thigh at times. 

“I could barely run,” Doncic said after the Mavs’ 113-106 loss.

Doncic left in the third quarter after missing a step-back jumper. At that point, he’d scored 15 points on 4-of-14 shooting.

The injury has bothered Doncic for more than a week, he said. He could not pinpoint when it happened, only that he noticed it when he woke up the day after a game.

“I didn’t get hit. So, it’s kind of weird for me,” Doncic said. “I really don’t know what it is.”

Doncic said if the MRI didn’t reveal a major injury he hoped ice and physical therapy would help him return quickly to a club that needs him for a playoff push.

After the loss to New Orleans, the Mavericks were 34-33 and narrowly in the Western Conference playoff picture. 

Doncic has been trying to play through the injury and had been productive recently, scoring 42 in a victory over Philadelphia, 34 in a loss to Phoenix and 29 in a triumph over Utah on Tuesday night.

But the next night in New Orleans, he didn’t look like his usual prolific self.

“We all can see he’s not moving well. So, shooting, defense, it’s affecting everything,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said. “He’s trying to fight through it and help his teammates, but he had to leave there, and hopefully it’s not something serious.”

Doncic said the injury affected his ability to run somewhat, but mostly bothers him on jump shots.

Now in his fifth NBA season, Doncic is Dallas’ leading scorer, averaging 33.3 points per game before Wednesday’s matchup with the Pelicans. He has averaged 27.6 points and eight assists for his career.