The FIBA World Cup has officially commenced and some of the biggest players in the basketball world are representing their country on the international stage. The likes of NBA stars such as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Rudy Gobert, Patty Mills, Lauri Markkanen, Nikola Vucevic, and Dennis Schroder, among several others, have already taken on the floor. Among the remaining 16 teams that take on the floor today are Team USA and Slovenia. While Anthony Edward and co. are the undisputed favorites to win it all, Luka Doncic will try his best to lead the Central European nation to glory. However, even before kickstarting their campaign, Slovenia encountered an issue for which Doncic called out FIBA.
Advertisement
The Dallas Mavericks had an unexpectedly shortened 2022-2023 campaign. Missing out on the postseason, Luka Doncic was able to head back to his home country earlier. The Point Forward decided to return to Ljubljana in style. Renting out the “Gulfstream G650”, Doncic paid $160,000 for his near-ten-hour trip. Four months later, as Slovenia prepares for their first matchup of the World Cup, Luka brings a huge error to FIBA’s notice.
Luka Doncic laughs at FIBA’s mistake
Ahead of Slovenia’s first contest of the World Cup against Venezuela, Luka Doncic pointed out the spelling error that FIBA made. The changing room sign had the word Slovenia misspelled. The International Basketball Federation wrote “Slovania”. As seen in tragicpatek’s tweet, someone made the correction with a marker.
The 6-foot-7 sensation didn’t seem to be pissed at the error. Adding a few laughing emojis to the photo, the 24-year-old prodigy hilariously took shots at FIBA.
“Thank you @FIBA”
Slovenia has climbed up the ranks over the past few years. While the team, as a whole, has drastically improved, Doncic needs to be given credit for their recent success. It was during the 2020 Summer Olympics when Doncic first showed out with some dominant performance. Jumping up 12 positions in the ranking board, Luka averaged 23.8 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 9.5 assists, as Slovenia finished fourth.
Ahead of the World Cup, Doncic had some great performances in the predatory games. Suiting up for four complete games, out of the team’s seven contests, the four-time All-Star lodged similar stats to his Olympics performance – 23.7 points, 9 rebounds, and 10 assists. Clearly, Slovenia is one of the powerhouses to look out for over the next few weeks.
Luka signed an extension with Jordan Brand
During his time with the Slovenian national team, Luka Doncic just announced major news. Extending his relationship with Jordan Brand, the Mavericks superstar has agreed to a new five-year deal.
Luka joined the NBA in 2018 while still being under a contract with Nike. As soon as the deal expired during his sophomore season, Luka signed his first five-year deal with Michael Jordan’s company. Since the signing, Luka has had two signature shoes released.
With the new agreement in effect through 2029, fans can expect the brand to massively capitalize on Doncic’s success.
