Luka Doncic Was Caught Trolling Rui Hachimura From the Sideline During Lakers Game 1

The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Houston Rockets 107-98 in Game 1, but one of the best moments from the night had nothing to do with the scoreboard.

Rui Hachimura was positioned in the corner on the offensive end, ready for a pass, when Luka Doncic snuck up and started hitting him from behind. Rui turned to stop him for a split second, then immediately snapped back and called for the ball.

All of this while the play was live.

Luka smacking Rui’s head while the ball is in play 💀💀💀 pic.twitter.com/x3ey2QCpfq
— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) April 19, 2026

In a video posted by Lakers Nation reporter Daniel Starkland from Monday's practice conference, Rui had no idea what they were talking about when the moment was brought up.

Rui's reaction said it all.

"When was that?" he asked. The reporter confirmed it was the second half, right near the bench. Rui still had nothing.

"I don't remember. He always do this, I probably did't even think about it. I'm used to it. I don't remember that."

A head tap from your star teammate during a live playoff game, and it did not even make a dent in his memory. That is how often Luka does this.

Rui Hachimura on What Having Luka Doncic Back Means to the Lakers

The pranks are one thing, but Hachimura made clear that having Luka back around means a lot more than that.

"It's amazing. I think people don't know how much impact Luka has, not only on the court, but off the court. He's a guy who's always been around. He always wanted to be around with us. We love him just being around, just hanging out, talking. We're happy that he's back finally. He's doing funny things like always. We missed him for sure."

Rui Hachimura doesn’t remember Luka messing with him from the bench during Game 1, but he’s have to see him back with the team joking around. pic.twitter.com/mnw0dz6cIg
— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) April 20, 2026

When asked what exactly Luka was up to, Rui kept it simple.

"Just messing around with the coaches, the players. It's just a normal thing you guys see on the camera probably. It's a normal thing for him."

Doncic has been out since April 2 with a Grade 2 left hamstring strain. He flew to Madrid for stem cell treatment and returned to Los Angeles last week. He has not resumed running yet and has no confirmed return date, but the Lakers are hoping to keep the series alive long enough to get him back.

The Lakers need this series to go deep if Luka is going to have any chance of suiting up. But even from the sideline, injured and in casual clothes, he is already doing what he has always done for this group.

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