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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 12: Luka Doncic #77 and Austin Reaves #15 of the Los Angeles Lakers hold hands during a time out in the second half of a game against the Chicago Bulls at Crypto.com Arena on March 12, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
MVP candidate Luka Doncic left Thursday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder with a hamstring injury, and Austin Reaves defended him against a heckling fan. The Los Angeles Lakers suffered a brutal 139-96 loss, but the injury was a bigger moment of concern for the foreseeable future. Doncic fell down in pain and instantly looked like something was wrong as the game stopped via a timeout.
The following conversation occurred between Reaves and a Thunder fan making fun of Luka:
OKC fan to Luka: “Now you know what it’s like to play defense.”
Austin Reaves: “STFU. He’s f*cking hurt!”
OKC fan: “F*ck you”
Austin: “F*ck you. Have some respect. Come on. That’s some BS. He’s hurt. That’s some BS. Have some f*cking respect.”
OKC fan: “He’s a crybaby.”
Reaves was visibly upset at the fan for crossing the line and talking trash to his injured teammate. Most instances of an injury will see the home crowd showing respect, regardless of which player gets hurt.
One Thunder fan clearly didn’t believe in that unwritten rule and felt the ire of Reaves in response. The average NBA player would love and respect Reaves as a teammate for having their back, while telling the fan to do better.
Reaves Stopped Security From Holding Him Back
The tense moment showed a rare glimpse of anger from Reaves, who is usually one of the coolest and calmest players on the court. Reaves even moved team security from blocking him away from the fan and wanted to keep the conversation going.
The fan didn’t expect Reaves to get that close and make eye contact while talking to him man to man. LeBron James also joined the situation by standing next to Reaves and staring down at the fan continuing to yell back at Reaves before calling him a crybaby.
Reaves first left the area after speaking his mind and making it clear to the fan that he was being extremely disrespectful. James followed Reaves as the rest of the Lakers went to check on Luka before he went back to the locker room.
Will Luka Doncic Miss Any Time?
The future of Doncic is unknown since he didn’t return after leaving Thursday night’s game. A blowout defeat saw most of the Lakers getting more rest late with the game out of line. Los Angeles could have played it safe with Luka due to the game being out of hand or the injury might be serious enough to linger longer.
Recent hot play helped the Lakers build a small lead for the third seed, but it is nowhere near clinched. Doncic missing time could risk the team falling lower in the standings without their best player recently playing arguably the best basketball in the league right now.
Reaves will have to step up on the court with a greater role on the offense for any games missed by Luka, like he stood for Doncic against the heckling fan. Bronny James may also benefit from this injury and get more playing time with no official reserve point guard on the roster.
Joey Haverford Joey Haverford is a seasoned sports content writer with over 12 years of experience. He has covered the NBA, WNBA, MLB, NFL, and professional wrestling in the sports industry. More about Joey Haverford
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