The black night of Luka Doncic

Wednesday night (6/9) in Manila was one of the best nights of this entire trip which started on August 16th and will end on September 12th. And it was beautiful because the World Cup’s best player filled the Mall of Asia Arena for the first time. Only Luka Doncic was so annoying, he broke the atmosphere and allowed Canada to get an easy win and advance comfortably (for the first time in their history) into the top four of the tournament.

What is happening to the Dallas Mavericks star is now unbearable. He said last year that he had come to terms with himself and tried to interact less with referees, after previously forcing Rick Carlisle out of the organization from which he was retiring. In Texas, they had a lot of problems with Luka’s behavior, but his immense talent overshadowed everything. In fact, he was sweeping them under the rug.

This year, Doncic has started working early. He didn’t even participate in the qualifiers, he faced a miserable failure with his team, and to balance the comments and criticism, he showed off his hard training on social media. The truth is that, at least physically, he appeared in better shape compared to the summer of 2022, but in essence he is the same Luca, with a few kilograms less.

Few saw Slovenia going far this year. The 8-goal was an achievable goal, and precisely because it was achievable, it was achieved. But the match with Canada was not in the favor of the Slovenes, who started impressively in the first half, and went to the locker room with the score 50-50, but they felt it was impossible to continue 40 minutes with the same rhythm.

They couldn’t bear it. They saw it, they felt it, they realized it, and despite the fact that they fought for the miracle in the end, they may have conceded too soon. There is no other way to explain the behavior of Doncic, who got it wrong. From early on, he was even expelled. And believe us, because we watched the match from the stadium and not from television, we saw much more than what the world saw on screens. We saw a lot of what the International Basketball Federation does not want to show on global broadcasts. .

Doncic twice had an argument with his coach and spoke to him in an extreme manner. He gestured from very early on towards the podium where FIBA ​​officials and World Federation Secretary General Andreas Zaglis were sitting. He would point at them, do the sock move, and even do the spitting motion. What the referees also heard is incredible. The highlight was when he walked in front of about 10 Australians to start talking trash. His father’s entourage intervened, and the Australians made it clear they had done nothing. And maybe they didn’t really do anything, it was clear from the way they tried to appease the spirits that they were innocent.

Luca needs to mature. He’s not 18 or 20 anymore, not even 22. He’s heading into 25 years, he’s a veteran of the sport and he’s not only making the same mistakes, he’s making them harder as if everyone is against him. not. It’s just that his temperament doesn’t allow him to play the basketball he’s truly capable of, and he’s literally destroying himself, his job, and the teams he leads.

Players left the Mavericks because they couldn’t live with it. Coaches and executives alike. In Dallas, they know how difficult his character is and they put up with him because somehow they hope that sooner or later he will understand that he has to change. And for those who react to this text, we have one thing to say. Doncic himself said in the press conference, which he insisted on attending despite his suspension, that he often complains too much, and that he needs to improve for the sake of the team and the country he represents.

But when asked what he was telling FIBA ​​officials, he refused to answer. Since he had such extreme behavior, in public, he had to answer. Or rather, he didn’t owe it to anyone, but after feeling hurt, wronged, and humiliated, he had the opportunity to get it out of himself and support his behavior. He didn’t do that.

Doncic knows his problem. He must also solve it, so that we can enjoy and support a talent that appears once every ten or twenty years. Manila was here, filling the stadium and cheering for him, but Luca got it all wrong. This is a shame for everyone. For him and his work, for his team, for the people who pay to see him, for the sport itself that you should respect more.

The FIBA ​​World Cup has begun, and SPORT24, with the support of Stoiximan, is following our national team on its way to competition.

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