Luka Doncic injury history: Every ailment that has caused him to miss games in his career
By Quinn Everts
Luka Doncic recently returned from a left calf strain that sidelined him for nearly two months. Doncic suffered the injury on Christmas Day, in a world when he still played for the Dallas Mavericks and we had no idea what was coming next.
That calf strain wasn't the first major injury Luka has dealt with in his career. He's never missed huge chunks of a season — he's never played under 60 games, or under 65 in a full season. But he's also played over 70 games only once, his rookie year, meaning he's had a tendency for minor injuries over the years. Here is his full history of injuries:
2018-19 season
In his rookie year, Doncic only missed 10 games for the Mavs. He dealt with a minor hip injury, a sore ankle and swelling in his right knee. As a clear future star, Dallas was cautious with Doncic in his rookie campaign.
2019-20 season
An ankle sprain in December of his sophomore season caused Luka to miss four games, then he re-injured that ankle at practice in January, which caused him to miss seven additional games. A thumb injury kept him out of one game later in the season, and he ended up playing 61 of the Mavs' 75 games.
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2020-21 season
The next year, Doncic stayed mostly healthy, playing 66 of 72 games, missing time with minor quad, back and arm injuries. In
2021-22 season
This was the first season Doncic missed over 15 games; he hurt his left ankle, which kept him out some time, then had to be sidelined with health and safety protocols due to COVID-19, which cost him five extra games.
Minor toe and ankle injuries also caused him to miss a few games. Doncic also missed some important playoff games due to a calf strain — but that did make Jalen Brunson a lot of money, so... good teammate.
2022-23 season
A thigh strain, heel injury, and more ankle injuries kept Doncic out of 16 games in 2022-23, when he played in 66 games again for the Mavs.
2023-24 season
Doncic's healthiest season since his rookie year, the Mavs star played in 70 games last season, missing time due to ankle, elbow and hamstring ailments, but nothing kept him out for an extended period.
2024-25 season
That leads us to this season, where Doncic has dealt with more long-term injuries than in any season of his career, both a knee contusion and most notably the calf strain he suffered on Christmas, which kept him out unitl his Lakers debut in mid-February.
So far, Doncic has played in just 24 games this year with the Mavs and Lakers, missing well over half the season. Even if he plays every game the rest of the yaar, he'll only have played 54 games the entire season, by far a career low.
At the moment, Doncic appears to be healthy; let's hope it stays that way the rest of the year.