Luka Doncic received praise as he joined an elite company after leading Slovenia to a seventh-place finish in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023.
The 24-year-old guard finished with 29 points in their 89-85 victory over Latvia on Saturday night, reaching 200 points in the quadrennial tournament in only eight games.
He is now one of the four players who have tallied that many points in eight games or fewer in the competition, alongside Drazen Petrovic (8 games, 1986), Shin Dong-pa (7 games, 1970), and Nick Galis (6 games, 1986).
Zoran Dragic was left amazed upon hearing that his teammate is now being mentioned in the same breath as these legends at such a young age.
“He deserved to be among these big names,” he said during the postgame presser at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
“He showed every game, every practice what kind of kid he is and he’s gonna accomplish even more in his career.
“I still can’t believe that Luka is still 24. Sometimes I’m looking at him, I think he is the same age with me,” he added, drawing chuckles from those in attendance.
Head coach Aleksander Sekulic echoed Dragic, adding that Slovenia as a whole is extremely proud to have a player like Doncic.
“There are some big names you mentioned there so, to have Luka at his age in this elite club, I think it’s a big honor for him also and a big honor for us as a Slovenia country to have such a player,” he added.
Doncic also collected 10 rebounds and eight assists in the victory, becoming the first player with 200-plus points, 50-plus rebounds, and 40-plus assists in a single World Cup tournament over the last 30 years.
The Dallas Mavericks’ main man ended his first World Cup campaign with averages of 27.0 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 6.1 assists.
Sekulic expressed his admiration for Doncic’s greatness, which, he said, isn’t just about basketball but as a person as well.
The veteran mentor lauded the character of his star player, especially when he chose to compete in their two classification games.
“Don’t forget the fact that we played two games which basically don’t mean a lot. If you play for fifth or seventh-place. But for him, it meant a lot,” he said. “So, it shows greatness and love for his country and for basketball.
“Not for him, but for all the players. When we talk about superstars like Luka, they can easily say that they don’t wanna play these kind of games, or they’re tired, or they have some small injuries but he wanted to play.”
For Sekulic, that meant a lot for the entire program and their future as well, to see their biggest star play regardless of the game’s significance. Thus, it’s an immense honor for him to be coaching a player like Luka.
“He wanted to win hard and he was leading the team. And that’s a big thing for us as a team to show young guys, guys who are becoming national team players, how to play — the way you respect the jersey, what you have in front,” he said.
“So, what you said now, these big names, having here, I’m honored to be the coach of this kind of team with Luka.”
