The Los Angeles Lakers have been in the news a lot lately for off-the-court reasons, but as the start of the 2026-27 season approaches, they need to shift their focus back to the team and how they can get back into contention.
The Lakers are beginning a new era with Luka Doncic as the face of their franchise and he understands the responsibility that comes with that as he is already stepping up as a leader. Doncic is hosting his teammates in his hometown of Ljubljana, Slovenia for a four-day minicamp ahead of the start of training camp.
With the camp taking place this weekend, the Lakers have officially arrived in Slovenia and were greeted by their leader:
🏀@Lakers are in town … #Ljubljana pic.twitter.com/FqYr0QvNT1
— Martin Pavcnik (@MartinPavcnik) August 20, 2026
@lukadoncic je v družbi hčerke Gabriele obiskal igralce v ljubljanskem hotelu. @Lakers pic.twitter.com/9XivZLIUOF
— 24ur.com (@24ur_com) August 20, 2026
Austin, Walker, Bronny, Jaden in Slovenia
📸: @24UR pic.twitter.com/xCp53620MQ
— Luka Updates (@LukaUpdates) August 20, 2026
Walker to Luka: Thanks so much man. Excited for the trip
Vando: AR got something to say
Austin: Ah, hell no. I’ll see him soon enough 😂
youtube/lakers pic.twitter.com/fKqmesuFd2
— Luka Updates (@LukaUpdates) August 20, 2026
Lakers are headed to Ljubljana ✈️ pic.twitter.com/WZ1ESlAFBD
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) August 20, 2026
The Lakers head into the 2026-27 season with nine new players on the roster, so this minicamp will be important for the guys to get to know each other on and off the court. Everyone outside of Cameron Carr is expected to be in attendance, as he unfortunately cannot attend due to a mandatory rookie event back in the states.
Itinerary for Lakers’ minicamp in Slovenia
While a lot of the focus during the Lakers’ minicamp in Slovenia will be building chemistry on the court, they will also do some activities off it as part of their itinerary.
“It starts off with Luka (Doncic) chartering a plane for 14 people,” Ramona Shelburne said on ESPN L.A. 710 AM. “I think (Sandro) Mamukelashvili is meeting them, he’s over in Georgia right now. The country, not the state (laughs). He’s chartering a plane, and on the plane there are, like, gift bags. And I think when they get to the hotel, there are going to be more gift bags. And there are all sorts of cool Slovenian things. It’s like a bachelorette trip. It really is. And then they’re going to go to Luka’s favorite restaurant, and they’re going to go fishing on Lake Bled which is this really fancy lake there. I guarantee there’s some golf involved at some point, there’s going to be some golf. There’s going to be bonding, it’s like five days. It’s a long trip to go on with your team.”
This trip should help kickstart the upcoming season for the Lakers as they look to get back into championship contention despite a mostly-new roster.
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