Luka Doncic Intends To Play For Slovenia, Setting Up Potential Collision Course With Giannis Antetokounmpo

Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic said Wednesday that he intends to play for the Slovenian national team at the 2024 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament this summer. Though he is monitoring a nagging knee ailment, he claimed that it would be the only thing that could keep him from competing.

“Yeah, I think we’ll see how my knee is. But if it’s a good, I’m going to go play, yeah,” Doncic said when asked about his knee at NBA Finals media day in Boston.

Regardless of whether the Mavericks defeat the Celtics in the NBA Finals, Doncic will wrap up an extremely productive season later this month. Not only did he improve his personal play and earn MVP consideration, but he has also led Dallas to a deep and unexpected postseason run.

Just as Doncic has proven himself indispensable on the Mavericks, the fate of the Slovenian national team also lies on his shoulders in many ways. He is the only NBA player on the team’s current roster and helped the team qualify for the 2020 Olympics for the first time in the nation’s history. He led the team in nearly every statistical category in the tournament, in which the Slovenians finished just outside medal position in fourth.

“It’s unbelievable; a country of two million people being top four in the world,” Doncic said in 2021. “We really achieved a lot by just going to the Olympics, it was our first time in history [here]. It’s incredible.”

In addition to the 2020 Olympics, Doncic has also contributed to Slovenia’s efforts to win the 2017 EuroBasket tournament and qualify for the 2023 FIBA World Cup.

Slovenia will compete in FIBA’s qualifying tournament against 23 other countries, including Greece in the preliminary round, which could put him into early international competition with Bucks star and former NBA champion Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Article by Patrick Moquin