Unhappy Luka Doncic undone in “strange things” controversy
Doncic shined with big numbers, but Slovenia’s EuroBasket opener slipped away amid technicals, lost momentum, and “strange things.”
Luka Doncic isn’t happy. The Los Angeles Lakers guard arrived at EuroBasket as one of the tournament’s marquee stars, but after a rough warm-up slate (1–5), during which he even called out his teammates, the 26-year-old hasn’t found his rhythm yet.
Doncic’s Slovenia loses EuroBasket opener
Slovenia’s EuroBasket campaign tipped off Thursday in Katowice, where Group D is based, and it opened the same way their last European Championship ended: with a loss to Poland. In Berlin two years ago, it was a quarterfinal exit; this time, it was a 105–95 setback in the opener.
Edo Muric finished with 17 points and Gregor Hrovat added 15, but Slovenia’s fate still rests almost entirely on Doncic’s shoulders. He poured in 34 points, including 17 from beyond the arc, and dished out nine assists in 36 minutes, good for an efficiency rating of 42. Even so, Slovenia was outscored by 10 while he was on the floor.
“Strange things” hamper Lakers superstar
Coach Alexander Sekulic was careful not to directly criticize the referees, but he did point to what he called “strange things” in the third quarter — technical fouls on both Doncic and the Slovenian bench among them.
“They played an incredible game, shot the ball really well — even guys who aren’t usually great shooters. I think the turning point came in the third quarter when strange things happened. We lost our momentum, gave away 12–13 points, maybe 15. We battled back, but they were better. I can’t say anything bad about my guys; they fought hard, left their hearts out there. But it wasn’t enough,” Sekulic said afterward.
Next up for Doncic and company is France on Saturday (11 a.m. ET), the strongest team in Group D and a squad that proved it with a 92–64 rout of Belgium in their opener. Iceland and Israel round out the group.
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