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Slovenia's Coach Reveals If Luka Doncic Will Play at EuroBasket After Shocking Lakers Trade

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Grant Afseth | Last updated Feb 17, 2025 4:05 PM ET

Before the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers, his intentions to play for the Slovenian men's national team at EuroBasket 2025 were clear.

Does Doncic still intend to continue to compete for his national team despite being traded to the Los Angeles Lakers? Slovenian men's national team head coach Aleksander Sekulic addressed the topic of Doncic's potential participation, mentioning that the program doesn't envision any issue.

"Luka always emphasized, he was always crystal clear about it. Namely, that he is ready to help the national team, as long as he is healthy," Sekulic told reporters. "We have never had these problems, and I do not see any problems in the future."

Sekulic shared his astonishment regarding the Mavericks' decision to trade Doncic to the Lakers.

"As for the trade itself, of course, I can also say that we were all shocked," Sekulic said. "The biggest shock was definitely for him, for his family, moving during the season is anything but easy. But we will see now - I believe that he can take the most from this transfer."

Doncic is still in the middle of his NBA season as he adjusts to his new team. He's averaging 27.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 7.5 assists across 24 games, with plenty of anticipation for what he can achieve alongside LeBron James after the NBA All-Star break.

With the Slovenian national team, Doncic helped guide a gold-medal-winning campaign at EuroBasket in 2017. This was the first time the program had earned hardware at the tournament. Doncic will be motivated to lead Slovenia after a disappointing finish at the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Pireaus last summer.

It remains to be seen which group Slovenia will be placed in at EuroBasket, but Latvia, Cyprus, Finland, and Poland are the host nations for the Group Phase. The Final Phase will take place in Latvia. A draw is scheduled on Mar. 27 in Riga, Latvia.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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