Euro: commando operation for Luka Doncic and Slovenia

Once the door opened, a swarm of cameras rushed to the floor to capture the last minutes of Slovenia’s training and, above all, Luka Doncic, on Wednesday. Five years after the European title conquered in 2017, the element of surprise has disappeared for good for the “Slovenian Mozart” and his band. Before heading to the shower, the Dallas star allowed himself a prank: a ball thrown high in the air during the end of session rally and fell straight on the skull of captain Goran Dragic, nicknamed the “Dragon”.

Absent from the international scene for five years, the “Dragon” had missed the 2021 Olympic Games and the cruel elimination in the semi-finals against France (89-90), an opponent that the Slovenians will meet again on Wednesday to complete the group stage. Convinced by Doncic and his teammates, Dragic eventually came out of retirement. “They lured me to play at home against Croatia in June and I found an incredible atmosphere. After that, I decided to join the team”, said the leader on Wednesday. The 36-year-old Euro 2017 MVP is now a luxury lieutenant for his 23-year-old teammate, a real attraction in Cologne. A journalist from Dallas Morning News even made the transatlantic trip to follow the course of Doncic.

A vindictive adversary

But the first obstacle on the road to a Slovenian double is significant. Gathered around its pivots Domantas Sabonis and Jonas Valanciunas, Lithuania has something to be forgiven for. Last summer, Slovenia had inflicted the affront of an absence at the Olympic Games by winning the final of the qualifying tournament in Kaunas (85-96).

“You can’t compare these two matches, the teams have changed a lot and the Lithuanians may have learned things about us. They are among the candidates for a medal”, warned Slovenian coach Aleksander Sekulic. Next opponent of the Lithuanians, from Saturday, the France team will closely follow this shock already crucial in the race for the round of 16.