Luka Doncic addresses hamstring strain, odds of returning to face Thunder

Well, about that.

Speaking for the first time since he sustained a Grade 2 hamstring strain on Apr. 2 at OKC, Doncic gave a pretty pessimistic — albeit realistic — forecast on things and if he could return before the Thunder get in the driver's seat of their Round 2 series against the Lakers.

Considering Doncic barely started running, he feels like a ways away from returning. Mix that with this playoff series being on an every-other-day schedule and any glass-half-full hope has waned down to near none.

"I'm just doing everything I can, like I said, every day I'm doing stuff I'm supposed to do," Doncic said. "The doctors said eight weeks at the beginning of the first MRI. So I'm just going day by day and I feel better every day."

Well, that's interesting. Think that's the first time we've known an official timeline on Doncic's return. Of course, we've received small updates from the NBA's top insiders, but the most we've gotten were vague estimations that he'd miss the start of the Lakers-Thunder series. Now, we know for certain an actual window.

And it's not looking good for Doncic to have a storybook return. Eight weeks from Doncic's Apr. 2 injury is May 28. That's well after a potential Game 7 between the Thunder and Lakers — which is scheduled for May 18. If the NBA's scoring champion isn't back by Game 4 on May 9, you have to wonder if they evaluate the risk-reward of rushing him back in a lost cause series if OKC takes care of business.

"I went to Spain to do PRP. Everybody knows that Spain, they're just one of the best countries to do that. I know and trust lots of people from Spain," Doncic said. "Why I was in Spain so long is because I needed four days in between every shot. So I did it four times. So that's why I stayed longer."

About as grim as things get. If you're the Lakers, you gotta just accept the fact that Doncic likely won't play this Round 2 series — barring a medical miracle. You don't want to mess with hamstring strains. They can become devastating if rushed back. Expect Los Angeles to remain game-for-game with his status, but each time the Thunder win, the percentage is presumably plummeting.

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Luka Doncic addresses hamstring strain, odds of returning to face Thunder