To think that 24 hours ago, Los Angeles Lakers fans (and the rest of the NBA) went from anticipating their showdown against the Thunder to wishing that it had never happened. In just three quarters, the team's goal went from building off their March momentum entering the playoffs to hoping they can get there somewhat healthy.
Luka Dončić, who had been dealing with left hamstring soreness, went down in the third quarter with what looked to be a serious hamstring injury. It was obvious it was bothering him in the first quarter, but he was re-evaluated at the half and given the green light to keep playing, although by then the game had been over.
The superstar guard will have an MRI on Friday that will determine the extent of the injury and how much time he will miss.
Lakers' new goal is to make it to the playoffs as healthy as possible
Assuming he won't play again in the regular season, Los Angeles needs to approach its final five games with caution. That means not ramping up pressure on Austin Reaves, who was grabbing at his back in Oklahoma City. Let him miss a game or two to rest. The same goes for LeBron James, who, if you didn't know by now, is 41.
If the Lakers are going to be without Dončić for the playoffs (again, we don't know for certain), they're going to have to rely heavily on Reaves and LeBron. Reaves has shown he can be that guy, but he'll need to be that guy times a hundred to get Los Angeles past the first round.
At least LA did itself a favor by staying above play-in range, as the team will have several days off after the regular season ends on April 12 before the first round starts. That time will do the whole team well, and it might even benefit Luka, but soft-tissue injuries are nothing to play with. It's hard to see him coming back in time for the first round, especially after the way he reacted on Thursday.
This isn't the position fans thought the team would be in, not after how the past few weeks went. There was real reason to believe that the Lakers could make a deep playoff run, but that hope evaporated as soon as Dončić went down.
The outlook shifted entirely, changing the priority from gearing up for what could be weeks of postseason basketball to making it there without dealing with any other blows.