Luka Doncic injury history and updates

The Dallas Mavericks are built around Luka Doncic, so they struggle whenever he misses time. The 22-year-old has already had multiple ankle injuries in his first four NBA seasons, but he has displayed a high pain tolerance is never afraid to play through a nagging ailment.

Doncic misssed ten straight games from Dec. 12 to Jan. 2 as he dealt with an ankle injury before going into the health and safety protocols. He re-injured the ankle on Dec. 10 against the Indiana Pacers. Doncic stayed in the game but admitted after the contest that he should not have played in the fourth quarter.

The Mavs split the ten games he missed. The ankle injury kept him out for five, and he missed five more in the health and safety protocols.

Luka Doncic injury update

Luka Doncic has cleared protocols and will rejoin the team for the Jan. 2 game in Oklahoma City against the Thunder.

Expect the Dallas Mavericks to hold him out until he is fully healthy because Doncic is coming off an ankle injury, and the team needs him to carry a massive workload.

Luka Doncic ankle injury, November 2021

Luka missed three games with a left ankle injury after being rolled up on by Nuggets guard Austin Rivers in the final seconds of a Nov. 15 victory. The Mavs listed it as left ankle and knee sprains.

Doncic returned just over a week later, but the injury has been nagging the 22-year-old superstar ever since. They are in no rush to bring him back after re-aggravating it.

Luka Doncic elbow injury, April 2021

Doncic missed a single game on April 29 with an elbow contusion. More than anything, it appeared Dallas was giving their superstar a breather in the midst of a jam-packed schedule that was forced on by the team’s COVID outbreak and the winter storm that shut down Dallas.

Luka Doncic back injury, March 2021

Back tightness cost Luka two games as he missed losses to the Pacers and Pelicans on March 26 and 27. It was a minor thing that saw him back on the floor two nights later dropping 25 points in a blowout win over the Thunder.

Luka Doncic quad injury, January 2021

Doncic missed one game with a quad contusion near the start of the 2020-2021 season. The Bulls dominated Dallas without Luka to run the team’s record to 2-4 in the early going.

Luka Doncic thumb injury, March 2020

Luka injured his thumb in the midst of a 26-point triple-double in a win over the Spurs on Feb. 26, and he played in the team’s next game but struggled in a loss to the Heat. The Mavs decided to sit him out against the Timberwolves, and his team went on to win by 20 points.

Doncic returned the following night with the thumb wrapped, but there appeared to be no lingering impacts.

Luka Doncic ankle injury, January 2020

Number 77 sprained his right ankle in practice on Jan. 30, and the injury forced him to miss seven games and two weeks of action. The Mavericks won three games during that stretch.

Luka came back and played in two games before Dallas rested the ankle on the second night of a back-to-back on Feb. 22.

Luka Doncic ankle injury, December 2019

Doncic sprained his right ankle less than two minutes into a game against the Heat on Dec. 14 and never returned. He was on crutches and in a walking boot following the game, and it caused him to miss four straight contests.

Luka Doncic knee injury, March 2019

Doncic missed five of the final seven games of his rookie campaign with swelling in his knee. He did play in Dirk Nowitzki’s final home game and had a 21-point triple-double. The issue was minor, but the Mavericks were out of contention and the team saw no reason to push their teenage star.

Luka Doncic ankle injury, February 2019

Luka missed two games with ankle soreness on Feb. 22 and 23 of his rookie year. The Mavericks lost both contests by double-digits.

Luka Doncic hip injury, December 2018

The first missed game of Doncic’s NBA career came on Dec. 2, 2018, when a hip strain forced him to miss a single contest. The Mavs topped the Clippers, and the teenager was back in the lineup two nights later with 21 points in a win over the Trail Blazers.

Luka has dealt with a handful of minor injuries since coming to the NBA in 2018. He missed 27 games over his first three seasons, and ankle sprains have been the only injury that has kept him out for any length of time.

Players that handle the ball as much as Luka will suffer injuries, and Doncic continues to show his toughness and determination to win on a nightly basis. Fans won’t want to miss a game, so stay tuned for all the latest on Luka Doncic at The Smoking Cuban.