Luka Doncic bites back at critics: “I could be on the beach”

Luka Doncic is one of the world’s leading basketball stars, but that does not make him immune to criticism, especially when playing as part of a team.

The Los Angeles Lakers star is currently at EuroBasket 2025, but things have not gone according to plan for his Slovenian national team, which has lost its opening two games in Group D.

After a disappointing 105-95 loss to Poland, Slovenia, with whom Doncic won the tournament in 2017, suffered a second defeat to France, one of the favorites to win the competition.

Criticism before and after close loss

Although Slovenia kept the game against France competitive, losing 103-95, Doncic and his teammates, who had already come under fire, faced criticism from some Slovenian media outlets for not putting in enough effort in their second group game.

The 26-year-old was quick to respond after the game. “What kind of criticism? We are fighting, we could be on the beaches and enjoying ourselves. I hope that as many people as possible support us. More than anything else, thank you to those who support us,” he told Slovenian reporters.

Confidence in teammates remains high

Doncic also praised his international teammates, saying they still believe they can qualify for the round of 16 and have a successful tournament. “In both games so far, we’ve given everything, really everything. We’re here to represent Slovenia and fight to win, and we’ll keep fighting. I think we proved what we’re capable of. Everyone fought hard, full credit to them.”

Despite scoring 39 points in the loss to France, Doncic remained modest about his own performance. “I made a lot of mistakes today, and I know I can do better.”

The task ahead for Doncic’s Slovenia

After two games, Slovenia sits fifth out of six teams in Group D. They must finish in the top four to reach the EuroBasket knockout stage. Doncic and his teammates will hope to secure wins against Belgium on August 31, Iceland on September 2, and Israel on September 4.

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