From the above article:

Luka Dončić’s second game of Slovenia’s EuroBasket prep campaign, just eight days after his summer debut in Ljubljana, was everything a Slovenia or Lakers fan could hope for. After a couple of months away from basketball to focus on his body, Dončić looked hungry for the game — playful, fully locked in, and dominant. The first half showed exactly why even prep games can be so fun to watch, with a packed Xiaomi Arēna in Riga in for a show as the Slovenian superstar went head-to-head with local hero and former teammate Kristaps Porzingis.

Then, just three minutes into the second half, came a scare. On one of the drives, Latvian point guard Kristers Zoriks pushed off his backpedaling defender Gregor Horvat, who lost his balance and crashed into Dončić as he was fighting for position under the basket. Dončić fell awkwardly, twisted his knee, and immediately asked out of the game, but managed to stand and walk off slightly hobbled to the locker room. Dončić, who later returned to the Slovenian bench and chatted with his father Saša, sat out the rest of the game, a 100–88 Latvia victory.

At the time of writing, there was no official announcement on Dončić’s injury. Early reports, however, were positive, saying he avoided anything serious and is expected to keep leading Slovenia’s EuroBasket campaign.

His status should be clearer soon, with Slovenia set to face Great Britain on Tuesday in front of the home crowd at Stožice Arena in Ljubljana, before closing prep play on August 21 in Belgrade against Nikola Jokić and European powerhouse Serbia.

EDIT: Slovenian Basketball Association just announced Dončić avoided injury and will rejoin team practice tomorrow.

The Belgrade Arena is already sold out, with the Serbian basketball federation president claiming a Dončić–Jokić showdown could sell 100,000 tickets. Just another glimpse of how much basketball with your country’s flag on your chest means to both players and fans in this part of the world.

Slovenia opens EuroBasket Group D play in 11 days, on August 28 in Katowice, against one of the hosts, Poland.

A 26-point first half explosion that felt like NBA basketball in August

I can fully relate to my new Lakers readers, just as I did to Mavericks fans over the past six years, on why every awkward fall from Dončić in national team play feels so stressful. However, Dončić’s loyalty to his national team is the same quality that made him beloved in Dallas, the same unconditional commitment he now shows the Lakers, and the same reason his summer contract extension came without any drama. It’s Dončić’s love for playing competitive basketball that makes him special, and last night showed just how much he missed it after his NBA season ended too early in late April.

Slovenia came into the matchup against Latvia still searching for confidence, having dropped their first three prep games. The team is in the middle of a generational shift, and tension flared when Zoran Dragić — brother of local legend Goran — was cut from the roster just days earlier. You could sense Dončić’s intent to put those distractions aside right from the start. He opened the game with guns loaded, reminiscent of some of his wild NBA scoring bursts that have made him one of the league’s best first-quarter performers in recent seasons.

Despite the stakes being totally different, last night’s first half brought back memories of Dončić’s 2024 Western Conference Semifinals Game 5 closeout of the Timberwolves — the night he drained any comeback hope and prompted Anthony Edwards’ hilarious line, “Luka had other intentions.”

Like in that game in Minneapolis, once Dončić drained his first step-back three, he slipped into a zone. The next was a pull-up from just a couple of feet inside half court — the kind of shot usually reserved for warmups, or for Lakers assistant (and current Slovenia staff member) Greg St. Jean building chest muscle. The arc on his threes looked incredibly smooth, as did the touch on his through-contact floaters. He even buried one from beyond the arc after unsuccessfully trying to draw a foul. The leaner Dončić looked quicker on his drives. Still, his ability to break down a defender off the dribble and get to the rim is harder to evaluate in a FIBA setup, where teams are allowed to pack the paint, especially with all the help and double-teams Latvia threw at him after his first-quarter explosion.

Along with the absurd passes we’re used to seeing from him, Dončić was active defensively as well, finishing with two steals and a block, one of the many highlights of the first half.

In his two Slovenia appearances so far this summer, Dončić has scored 45 points in 44 minutes — nearly a 37-point per-game pace when translated to a per-36-minute format comparable to his NBA workload. Dončić has hit 8 of his 17 threes, 47 percent, another encouraging sign Slovenians hope carries into EuroBasket and Lakers fans hope continues in training camp come October.

What comes next for Luka and Slovenia?

Slovenia dropped its fourth straight prep game and is now 0-4, with all four losses coming by double digits. Without Vlatko Čančar and naturalized big man Josh Nebo, it’s clear this team lacks the high-end NBA or Euroleague talent, size and athleticism that Europe’s top contenders such as Serbia, France, and Germany possess. For this Slovenian team, simply advancing out of the group stage would be a success, with any win in the knockout rounds coming as an underdog surprise.

I’ve seen fans, and even some U.S. media, suggest that Dončić should shut down his EuroBasket campaign after the injury scare and focus on the upcoming Lakers season. I’d be very surprised to see that happen. In fact, I wouldn’t be shocked if he does everything possible to play in the last prep game against his buddy Nikola Jokić in Belgrade. Love it or hate it, that’s just how number 77 is wired.

From the above article:

Lakers Receive:
-Andrew Wiggins
-2026 first-round pick

Heat Receive:
-Austin Reaves
-Jarred Vanderbilt
-Dalton Knecht

Lakers Get Two Heat Players In Blockbuster Trade Idea That Should Finally Happen https://t.co/MPb74VY8Td— LakerTom (@LakerTom) August 17, 2025

From the above article:

Los Angeles Lakers Receive:
-Andrew Wiggins
-Jaime Jaquez Jr.

Miami Heat Receive:
-Rui Hachimura
-Dalton Knecht
-Maxi Kleber
-2031 first-round pick

Other than injury, great game from Luka. He looks way more fit and he looks very motivated on defense. Can’t wait to see him in that Laker jersey again 🤩 pic.twitter.com/l4ZLxLNvLZ— Lakers Wire (@lakerswire1) August 16, 2025

I would be very surprised if Rui got an extension before free agency before next summer. Everything will hinge on how everyone fits in around Luka as well if he vibes with you. Also if the team doesn’t get to the NBA finals ….maybe a competitive game 7 of the western conference finals….it’s unlikely this group carries over. That includes Reaves if he struggles in the playoffs.

Lakers’ Roster Set To Start Season! What Is Team’s Ceiling And Floor? Having decided to wait until midseason before making additional roster moves, what is the Lakers’ current roster’s ceiling and floor assuming they upgrade their starting small forward and backup center by… pic.twitter.com/pybJhB284x— LakerTom (@LakerTom) August 16, 2025

Lakers’ Roster Set To Start Season! What Is Team’s Ceiling And Floor? LAKERS’ CURRENT CEILING IS ‘NBA CHAMPIONSHIP’If the Lakers trade for a legitimate elite POA starting small forward and a quality rim protecting defensive backup center before the trade deadline, their… pic.twitter.com/1r3oa9CFXV— LakerTom (@LakerTom) August 16, 2025

Lakers’ Roster Set To Start Season! What Is Team’s Ceiling And Floor? LAKERS’ CURRENT FLOOR IS ‘PLAY-IN TOURNAMENT’If the Lakers fail to trade for a legitimate elite point-of-attack starting small forward and quality rim protecting defensive backup center before the… pic.twitter.com/rUBIW8t8CN— LakerTom (@LakerTom) August 16, 2025

Rui, for this team, is better than Wiggins. Time Lord is a broken watch one can’t rely on. Mitchell Robinson would be great but you’d need to trade a center to the Knicks somehow. Better off waiting until the deadline, anyhow, because this team…with Hayes starting…put together a great run of two way basketball that was only derailed by LeBron getting hurt. I’m thinking this group gets the whole season unless something goes seriously wrong. Otherwise it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to basically throw a puck away unless you’re getting back a player that fits so perfectly it’s be crazy not to make a trade. Lu Dort comes to mind. But you only mention has-been players. Ben Simmons,Time Lord, and, frankly, Smart has a decent shot of being one himself. I really like Mitchell Robinson but even he has barely been able to stay on the floor. We need guys who can play. Rui plays and plays as well as Wiggins. No need to trade for has-beens and glory day players.

Also I think you’re being unimaginative when it comes to next summer. Let’s use your floor/ceiling notion. If Reaves and Rui play well enough to garner big contracts AND one of Giannis or Jokic are somehow available that all plays into the Lakers hands. Y’see, we can trade 3 1st round picks in but one, single, solitary day: Draft Day 2026. Then we have to trade or use the 2026 pick. So it won’t be there after that. Additionally, because Draft Day happens before free agency and teams can negotiate with their own players prior to July, we’ll have a fair notion of what Reaves and Rui will be worth, they can be included in a Draft Day deal or used when free agency starts in a sign and trade. 2 impact players in deals that work for the team they’re going to and their internal timeline along with 2 (or 3 if it’s draft day) FRP’s can make a lot more happen than trying to band aid our way out of what doesn’t really even feel like much of a problem given that we haven’t even seen this team play a full season. We got a 3/4 version of Luka, no camp, and a team built for AD and LeBron and had to be retooled on the fly.

At any rate, I’m not seeing a midseason trade, not for any other reason other than that the Lakers definitely want to have as many picks as possible on Draft Day. Now…now if there’s a trade out there that brings back a FRP and an impact player then sign me up. I highly doubt that will happen.

Jamie, the problem you completely ignore is, if the Lakers do not make a midseason trade, they will have $40M in contracts expire and they will not have enough tradable contracts to make a trade for Giannis or Jokic if they do not sign extensions.

There has to be a consolidation trade either before the season or before the trade deadline. Can’t let those players walk with nothing in return and would be huge mistake to give any of them including Rui an extension for more money. Lakers would be fools to go all cap space for an offseason with no superstars available. Ain’t going to happen.

You write a good article Tom but you don’t have a grasp on the NBA today. After signing Luka to an extension those swaps don’t mean much. Desmond Bane cost 4 unprotected 1st round picks. Mikal Bridges took 5 first rounders. Neither have ever been an all star. That’s the price of business in today’s NBA. By the way the only person in the NBA universe that thinks Wiggins is an elite defender is you. He has never even made 3rd team all nba defense. Thats not elite. He’s been considered a good defender. But he’s not as good as he was a few years ago. You stated that the Lakers didn’t trade for him because they didn’t want to give up a first. Dan Wolke a writer I trust said they never were all that interested to begin with. It was click baiters that kept that story alive. As for Williams we can’t even trade for him. We are under the cap by only a million. Sending Gabe for him would push us over. And the Trailblazers don’t have the roster space or are far enough under the cap to absorb a 2nd player. By the way he will be a free agent and we couldn’t trade him summer anyway if that’s what you are thinking. If you want a contract to trade this summer extend Rui. He is a much better defender than you give him credit for. At least the Lakers think so but what do they know. Right?

Can’t Reply for some reason but new Comments work fine. Anyhow, you’re not fully grasping my point, which isn’t surprising because it’s not a trade. There will be one, single day in which the Lakers will have expiring contracts AND 3 First Round draft picks: Draft Day next summer. After that they only have 2 draft picks to offer and sign and trade options. Therefore, logic informs us the most likely day we’ll see trade action is on that day. After that it comes down to 3 things:

-How valuable and key to future success the Lakers think Reaves is vs. what the expected market will bear on July 1.

-Same goes for Rui.

-What quality players are available.

Because LeBron has not announced this as being his final season, and because I think he will do a farewell tour prior to retiring, there’s an 80+% chance he stays a Laker beyond this season. That possibility won’t sit well with some but that’s the most likely scenario, should we not hear about a retiring James. To say otherwise ignores so much Laker history and pattern of doing business it’s funny. Unless he retires, LeBron is definitely in play as our major signing next offseason.

If you’re a long time fan of basketball who also has studied what works and what doesn’t this is not news. Top tier athletes, incredible dribblers and shooters, and dunkers beyond compare mean little in the face of chemistry, team work and toughness. It’s why high octane offenses that don’t also play defense fail in the playoffs. Every. Time. It’s why guys who come into the league with a bag of moves but no desire to improve or play defense fail in the league. Every. Time. The qualities of a winner are not flashy, pretty or even very fun to watch. They are designed for one thing: winning. Those qualities are not an amazing crossover or the ability to jump high or move fast. It’s the quality to never quit, to never stop searching and exploiting an edge. To improve your defense.

Steph without Draymond Green goes nowhere, just look at Klay. With AD he has the defender now but prior to that, with a dazzling offensive player in Luka, the Mavs were OK. They did Luka wrong by spending so much on Klay who can no longer be the defender he once was. Hopefully the Lakers can avoid that error. One of the best things about this summer is seeing just how serious Luka took everything that happened last season and used it as fuel to improve. THATS the mark of a winner.

Fucking unbelievable shooter!

Looks about right. I know some people are hoping Smart starts, that’s a short starting 5 and leaves the bench with a playmaking deficit. Rui will start and I don’t think there’s a world where they bench Reaves.

First of all I do not think this a terrible starting five. This unit was playing some of the best defense in the league after the Luka trade. We actually were better defensively than when we had AD and Max. The main factors of our playoff loss was the following. We did not have a quality starting center. Hayes hardly got on the floor, forcing us to play small the entire game. When you are playing a team with size you have to pack the paint which caused rotation problems. The Twolves scored 103 points in the last game. Rudy had 27 points and 24 rebounds. Perimeter defense was obviously not the problem. Ant Man is a super star. He averaged 26 for the series. But on 42% shooting and 33% from 3. That’s good defense. I will take that everyday of the week. Our 2nd unit gave us nothing. Even DFS didn’t contribute much offense. The elimination our reserves scored 4 points. Our lack of depth caused us to over play our starters and they just wore down. I am not worried about the starting five, I am more concerned with the bench.

We couldn’t trade for him anyway. We are only one mil under the hard cap. Say we wanted trade him for Gabe we would go two mil over which we can’t do. Plus the Trailblazers are sitting on 16 players and only 4 mil under the tax. It would be hard to make anything work.

Other than swapping Ayton for Hayes they’re running back. End of discussion. Is there a snow ball’s chance in Hell that Jake edges Rui…not really.

8-2W Home vs Warriors (NBC)W Home vs Wolves (Prime Video)W Away @ Kings*W Home vs Blazers*L Away @ Wolves (ESPN)W NBA Cup Game @ Grizzlies (Prime Video)W Home vs HeatW Away @ BlazersW Home vs Spurs (ESPN)L Away @ Hawks— LakerTom (@LakerTom) August 14, 2025

6-4.

Looking forward to his and the Phil statue!

In addition to your local broadcasts, this is the national schedule by day for this season. New habits incoming pic.twitter.com/dMqwih9Pye— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) August 14, 2025

From the above article:

How does Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and Stephen Curry impact the 2027 summer?

Antetokounmpo has a $62.8 million player option in 2027-28 and is allowed to extend for an additional four-years and $293 million next offseason. The player option is replaced with the first year of the extension.

Jokic is eligible now to sign a three-year, $206 million extension but has delayed talks until next summer, sources confirmed to ESPN. By waiting another year, he would then be eligible to add a fourth year and additional $87 million. Like Antetokounmpo, Jokic has a $62.8 million player option for 2027-28.

Curry, meanwhile, does not have a player option in 2027-28 and could become a free agent for just the second time in his career. Because of the Over 38 rule, he can extend for no more than two years and $136.7 million. Curry, Jimmy Butler III and Draymond Green all can be free agents in the 2027 offseason.

Other All-Stars that are extension-eligible and could be a free agent in 2027 include Donovan Mitchell, Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Davis and Kawhi Leonard.

Besides James, who are the next best free agents?

The top players who could become free agents next summer include (P: Player option; T: Team option; R: Restricted):

Franchise player: LeBron James

All-NBA: Kevin Durant

All-Star: James Harden (P), Trae Young (P)

Top starter: Bradley Beal (P), Christian Braun (R), Toumani Camara (R), Dyson Daniels (R), Lu Dort (T), Draymond Green (P), Walker Kessler (R), Zach LaVine (P), Keegan Murray (R), Norman Powell, Austin Reaves (P) and Coby White

Starter level: Deandre Ayton (P), Harrison Barnes, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (P), John Collins, Mike Conley, Jalen Duren (R), Tari Eason (R), Rui Hachimura, Tobias Harris, Isaiah Hartenstein (T), Jaden Ivey (R), CJ McCollum, Khris Middleton, Jusuf Nurkic, Kristaps Porzingis, Collin Sexton, Shaedon Sharpe (R), Anfernee Simons, Fred VanVleet (P), Nikola Vucevic, P.J. Washington, Andrew Wiggins (P) and Mark Williams (R)

The 2026 free agent class could get a boost if current restricted free agents Jonathan Kuminga, Cam Thomas, Quentin Grimes and Josh Giddey sign the one-year qualifying offer before Oct. 1. They would be unrestricted in 2026 if they take the one-year contract.