Lakers to Send Coach With Luka Doncic to Slovenia: Report

The Los Angeles Lakers are sending a coach to the Slovenian national team to support Luka Doncic at the FIBA EuroBasket 2025.

Matej Erjavec, president of the Basketball Association of Slovenia, announced that Doncic will be representing the team for the international tournament, something he did regularly while on the Dallas Mavericks.

According to Erjavec, there were worries that the Lakers would not be so willing to let Doncic play over the off-season, particularly with such a high risk of injury, but the franchise complied after a conversation between Sasa Doncic. Luka's father, and Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka.

The team is going as far as to assign a team coach to the Slovenian team's staff, though the exact staff member and their role were not immediately revealed.

"Within two minutes of meeting Rob Pelinka, we finished the conversation. He said - well, you'll get Luka and one coach and that's it. And we finished," Erjavec said in a statement released.

"So there was no debate at all. So it will be similar to what happened with Dallas. We are still discussing who (this coach, note a) will be. It is still a matter of agreement.

"We already know in principle, but it is not fixed yet. He will accompany Luka and be part of the staff."

The international tournament is set to run from August 28 to September 14, with Doncic joining the team two weeks before the tournament starts.

A conditioning coach would seemingly be the ideal choice for the Lakers, given the team's interest in Doncic getting into better shape over the off-season and maintaining that level of shape heading into the season.