Luka Doncic: ‘I Let My Team Down’ After Slovenia Falls Short to Poland in Eurobasket Quarterfinals
Luka Doncic has been tearing it up at Eurobasket for the Slovenian national team, ranking in the top 10 in all three major statistical categories, averaging 26 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game.
Unfortunately for Doncic, the Slovenian national team was eliminated from Eurobasket by Poland in the quarterfinals. Luka Legend finished the game with 15 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists against seven turnovers on 33 percent shooting before fouling out with 3:04 left in the fourth quarter. Doncic was coming off three consecutive 30-point games before the loss.
“Today, I played terribly,” Doncic said. “I let my team down. I let the whole country who was supporting us down. And that’s on me. I got to look back at this game and be better.”
Despite his fantastic play throughout group play and in the knockout stages, Doncic has been dealing with injuries throughout the tournament, specifically in his back during the match with Poland. He does not consider that to be a viable excuse, though.
“I don’t know, probably not 100% (health-wise),” Doncic said. “I received [an] injection in the third quarter. I was dealing with a lot of this EuroBasket. But that’s not the reason, you know.”
Slovenia was down by 21 points by halftime against Poland, but they rallied in the third quarter to cut the deficit to one point before losing 90-87. Doncic fouled out with three minutes remaining in the game, with Slovenia only down four points. Vlatko Cancar of the Denver Nuggets and Bulls guard Goran Dragic each helped Doncic pick up the slack with 21 and 17 points, respectively, but it wasn’t enough to lift Slovenia over Poland.
Media Day for the Dallas Mavericks is only 11 days away (Sept. 26), and training camp begins the following day. The Mavericks begin the season against the Sun on Oct. 19.
