Report: Luka Doncic has begun the same strict diet as last offseason

To paraphrase something the late great Kobe Bryant once said right after getting knocked out of the NBA playoffs, next season starts right now for the Los Angeles Lakers. They face a potentially monumental offseason in which they could have as much as roughly $50 million of salary cap space to work with, partly because several of their key players can or will become free agents, including LeBron James and Austin Reaves.

For all intents and purposes, their 2025-26 season ended on April 2 when Reaves and Luka Doncic suffered oblique and hamstring strains, respectively. Reaves returned a few weeks later in the first round of the playoffs, but Doncic was never close to coming back.

The good news is that not only has the pain in Doncic's injured hamstring subsided, but he has also reportedly returned to the same strict diet he adopted last summer when he lost weight and got into much better shape, per The Athletic.

"He’s already begun the same strict offseason diet he undertook to transform his body last summer and is currently pain-free in the hamstring, positive signs for his long-term health," wrote Dan Woike and Sam Amick.

"The expectation is that he won’t be limited in his offseason preparation for next year, the Lakers’ top priority in a good position to lead whatever roster the Lakers put alongside him."

Until the start of last offseason, Doncic had been criticized for his lack of fitness and conditioning, as well as having a diet that wasn't healthy enough. But he put in lots of hard work and smart work, and it resulted in him having a fantastic 2025-26 campaign until his hamstring injury.