This summer has been an important one for new Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic as he got himself in tremendous shape to prepare for next season.
After a shocking departure from the Dallas Mavericks, the Slovenian guard is looking to prove a lot of people wrong and this summer’s EuroBasket tournament is a chance to showcase how great of shape he is in after completely transforming his body.
Of course representing his country means a lot to Doncic, but so far, Slovenia has struggled in its exhibition games. After Saturday’s 100-88 loss to Latvia, they have fallen to 0-4 and to add insult to injury, the 26-year-old suffered what appeared to be a knee injury early in the third quarter:
Luka appeared to injure himself on this play and went back to the locker room. 😬
(via @LukaUpdates) pic.twitter.com/n1ENEbRaAk
— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) August 16, 2025
Before that, Doncic was putting together a great game with 26 points, four rebounds and five assists in the first half. Thankfully, it looks like he has avoided anything serious to his right knee and will remain with Slovenia for EuroBasket, via Dan Woike of The Athletic:
Source tells me that he's avoided any serious injury on the play. https://t.co/UtFc5hGPxo
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) August 16, 2025
A source tells me Luka Dončić escaped today without any significant injury and will remain with the Slovenian national team and continue to compete in EuroBasket this summer.
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) August 16, 2025
It was later confirmed by NBA insider Marc Stein that Doncic is dealing with a knee contusion that isn’t serious:
Luka Dončić has been diagnosed with a right knee contusion, sources briefed on the situation tell @TheSteinLine, but the injury he sustained today with Slovenia’s national team is not believed to be serious.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) August 16, 2025
This was a scenario of a true freak accident as one of his teammates tried to put himself in position for an offensive foul and went back in Doncic’s knee. Due to how fast he flew back into the Lakers star, it is a sigh of relief that nothing traumatic happened because that could have led to a significant injury.
After being looked at in the locker room, he returned to the court and watched the rest of the game from Slovenia’s bench and appeared to be in good spirits. He even tried to come back in the game, although his coaches understandably did not allow it.
The Lakers likely spoke with Doncic on Saturday and cleared him to continue playing so Slovenia, but it will definitely be something to monitor when he next takes the floor.
Slovenian teammate credits Luka Doncic for growing as leader
As Luka Doncic embraces a new chapter with the Lakers, he now is the face of a historic franchise. With that comes immense responsibilities as he needs to lead L.A. for years to come.
Up to this point, Doncic was not seen as a vocal leader, but one of his Slovenian teammates credited him for growing in that regard.
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