The new improved Luka Doncic returned to action to represent his country.
Luka Doncic has played his first game since the LA Lakers‘ first round playoff elimination at the start of June.
Doncic took a month break from basketball and focused purely on improving his body and conditioning, and proudly showed off the results, earning praise from Magic Johnson.
Now he is back on the court again, playing for Slovenia against Germany in a friendly international fixture as both teams prepare for the upcoming EuroBasket competition.
Luka Doncic admitted before the game that he was unclear how many minutes he would play, and would be guided by his fitness.
He played 24 minutes, scoring 19 points, including 3-for-6 from three point range. He also grabbed three rebounds and posted five assists.
Doncic’s efforts were not enough to prevent Slovenia slipping to an 89-103 defeat to Germany.
The Lakers star scored the most points in the game, with the Orlando Magic’s Franz Wagner scoring 18 for Germany, along with Real Madrid’s David Kramer.
Luka Doncic is the biggest star in Slovenian sports and there is a big interest in his career in LA, and arguably even more so when he is representing his national team.
National outlet Ekipa noted how the ‘aggressive’ German team ensured the game was ‘far from friendly’, and this saw Doncic clash with the referees, as he is known to do.
Their report noted: “Luka had four personal fouls before the end of the first half. Of course, as a result, he played more reserved, especially in defense.”
Slovenian sports site 24ur.com wrote: “He looked very motivated and summery, controlling every attack of the Slovenian national team.”
They added: “Doncic was also very active on defense and stopped several of the opponents’ attacks. It was quickly clear that the Los Angeles Lakers basketball player is in good physical condition, even though this was his first game since May.”
SportKlub reported that Doncic ‘regained his basketball lungs’, and ‘showed his competitive passion’, arguing with Moritz Wagner on the German bench.
They added that it was ‘a pleasing performance’ with Doncic clearly having lots in reserve.
Slovenia and Germany will compete again in another friendly on August 10.
