Luka Doncic won the NBA scoring title this season with the Los Angeles Lakers by averaging 33.5 points in 64 games, and while he missed the last few contests of the regular season due to his hamstring injury, he still ended up leading the league in total points.
Doncic, who, based on the latest injury update, is headed back to Los Angeles to be re-evaluated soon, had a historic first full season with the Lakers. While he might not win the MVP, the Slovenian cemented his early-career legacy with the franchise.
On the year, Doncic averaged 33.5 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 8.3 assists on 47.6/36.6/78 shooting splits, but highlighted by his scoring, has set himself apart, both in the Lakers’ franchise ranks and in NBA history.
Lakers’ Luka Doncic Scoring Title Stats
GettyLos Angeles, CA – March 27: Lakers guard Luka Doncic, #77, winks and points to a player after a play in the second half against the Brooklyn Nets at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles Friday, March 27, 2026. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
While Doncic missed the past few games for Los Angeles, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sat out for the Oklahoma City Thunder‘s final game of the year, and while he was second in scoring for much of the season, his absence resulted in Doncic clinching the scoring title for the 2025-26 NBA season.
This is Doncic’s second scoring title of his career, as he did it once already with the Dallas Mavericks two seasons ago by way of averaging 33.9 points across 70 games.
Doncic is now one of three point guards in NBA history to win multiple scoring titles, as Stephen Curry did it in 2016 and 2021, and Russell Westbrook did in 2015 and 2017. He’s now also only the sixth active player with multiple scoring titles, as, besides Curry and Westbrook, Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Joel Embiid have led the NBA in scoring at least twice.
Additionally, Doncic is the first Lakers player to average the most points in the league since Kobe Bryant accomplished that feat in 2007 with a 31.6 points per game average. He’s the 5th Laker to hold the scoring title, and is now averaging the fifth most points by a player in franchise history.
Finally, Doncic is just one of 11 players in NBA history to average at least 33.4 points per game, while Harden is the only other active star to hit that mark.
While the hamstring injury clouded Doncic’s MVP odds and the Lakers’ chances of making a deep playoff run, he had a historic scoring season that likely won’t be forgotten anytime soon.
Luka Doncic Injury Update
Doncic originally didn’t have a return timeline for the grade two hamstring injury he suffered in early April.
However, after heading to Europe for treatment, the NBA superstar is expected to be on his way back to Los Angeles and expects to be re-evaluated by the Lakers soon, according to insider Shams Charania.
“Luka Doncic, he spent the last week in Spain, from my understanding, the majority of time in Spain,” Charania said on The Pat McAfee Show. “He underwent multiple injection treatments in that hamstring to see if he can promote quick healing. My understanding is he’ll be back in the States on Tuesday, and they’re going to reevaluate him.”
The typical return timeline for a hamstring injury is roughly 40 days with a high chance of re-injury, and while the Lakers have yet to announce any official timeline, Doncic could get back on the court sooner than almost anybody expected.
Per Ramona Shelbourne of ESPN, a Doncic return in the first round of the playoffs against the Houston Rockets can’t be ruled out.
“From what I understand, there’s a chance Luka could come back later in the first round. He’s in Spain, he’s getting treatment every day. A lot of people on the team are talking to him every day,” she said earlier in the week. “Even if Luka is not able to make it all the way back in the first round, that does give them some hope. If they can extend the series one or two at home, maybe there’s a chance Luka comes back.”
For now, Doncic remains sidelined with the hamstring injury that put an early end to his historic scoring season. He has the chance to come back and put a cap on one of the best seasons of his career, but that remains to be confirmed.
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