Luka Doncic is preparing to represent the Slovenian national team at the FIBA EuroBasket tournament. He will be one of the star talents in the tournament.
On Wednesday, Doncic and his teammates concluded their final preparatory practice session. They will face Poland on Thursday, marking Doncic’s first game of this year’s tournament. However, Doncic’s final practice session with his national team was slightly different than normal, as both Jeanie Buss and Rob Pelinka were in attendance to show their support.
Buss and Pelinka have travelled over 5,800 miles to Katowice, so they could be present for Doncic, which is something that hasn’t gone unnoticed.
“Means a lot, it’s a long flight, like 11, 12 hours, means a lot for them to be here to support me. We had a great lunch today, it was great to see them,” Doncic said during a post-practice media availability.
The Los Angeles Lakers have been pulling out all the stops this summer. They’ve reportedly consulted Doncic on multiple talent additions, including Marcus Smart and DeAndre Ayton. They also signed him to a three-year contract extension designed to expire as he becomes supermax eligible with the franchise.
Furthermore, there was no commotion from the franchise when Doncic had an injury scare earlier in Slovenia’s EuroBasket preparations. Instead, the front office continues to display trust and optimism in Doncic and his future with the Lakers. Pelinka also recently discussed his desire to empower Doncic to represent his country and participate in international tournaments.
“We want to let him focus and dedicate to this tournament, EuroBasket, and not distract him in any way,” Pelinka said via The Athletic’s Dan Woike. “We want him to a hundred percent be able to play for his country with pride, and he’ll turn his attention to the Lakers as soon as this tournament ends, hopefully with them going far and maybe winning.”
The Lakers want to be Doncic’s forever home. Everything they’re doing is structured to make him feel at home and part of the family. So far, the Lakers front office hasn’t put a foot wrong.
However, it will be interesting to see how long they remain on their best behaviour, after all, forever is a long time.
