The Dallas Mavericks’ NBA Finals hopes have disappeared this year.
However, the Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic dropped a triple-double to keep his native Slovenia’s Olympic hopes alive. Doncic recorded 36 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists, as Slovenia blew out New Zealand 104-78 on Thursday. Slovenia clinched a semifinal spot in the Olympic qualifying tournament in Piraeus, Greece, after needing a win of ten-plus points.
Doncic’s triple-double helped keep his Olympic hopes alive as well. Slovenia has certainly bounced back after an apparent lack of energy against Croatia. Doncic and Slovenia’s next opponent is Milwaukee Bucks star and Athens, Greece, native Giannis Antetokounmpo and Greece on Saturday. Read on for more details.
Luka Magic in Piraeus, Greece
Luka Doncic, also known as Luka Magic, is known for his magical plays, statistics, and stat lines. And, just like in the NBA regular season and postseason in North America, there’s Luka Magic in Greece.
Luka Doncic’s triple-double was a personal achievement and a game-changing moment for the general public. Slovenian basketball fans are relieved, as Dallas Mavericks fans can see Luka Doncic face off against Giannis Antetokounmpo this weekend. The Slovenia men’s national basketball team looked to Doncic, who helped his home country’s team build a 13-0 run, achieve a 62-43 lead at halftime, and ultimately blow out the New Zealand men’s national basketball team by a final score of 104-78.
Luka Doncic might have his moments, but there’s always a chance for basketball fans to see Luka Magic.
Luka Doncic to Take on Giannis Antetokounmpo
As mentioned, Luka Doncic and the Slovenia men’s national basketball team will take on Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Greece national men’s basketball team on Saturday. Doncic and Antetokounmpo are both NBA All-Stars, so this should be a good, if not great, matchup for both parties’ journeys to the Olympics.
The winner of Saturday’s match will advance to Sunday’s final with a berth at stake, while the loser will be eliminated. In addition to Slovenia vs. Greece, Croatia vs. Dominican Republic will be played in Piraeus, Greece, on Saturday. Giannis Antetokounmpo might be more rested than Luka Doncic, Josh Nebo, etc., as he had the day off in Greece’s match vs. Egypt, but we’ll see what happens.
Luka Doncic’s Similarities to Giannis Antetokounmpo
Vassilis Spanoulis, the head coach of the Greece men’s national basketball team, was satisfied with Greece’s 93-71 win over Egypt.
Vassilis Spanoulis, a former Greek professional basketball player drafted with the 50th overall pick in the second round of the 2004 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks, said, “We had 34 assists and only 13 turnovers … This shows our identity. On the other hand, we have to improve our defense. Especially in the second quarter, I didn’t like a lot of things. It was great that it happened so that it won’t happen again. We have to be more solid in some parts of the game.”
Vassilis Spanoulis’ relationship with Luka Doncic goes way back to when Doncic was playing with Olympiacos Piraeus. Doncic revealed that he picked number 7 at Real Madrid and 77 with the Slovenian national team because that was Spanoulis’ jersey number with the Reds. Spanoulis also stressed the importance of teams having idols such as Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpo to lead on and off the court, while believing it’s important for Greece to have several defensive stoppers to defeat Slovenia.
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