A power-packed performance from Luka Doncic inspired Slovenia to defeat Venezuela in the Olympic qualifiers semi-final.
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While the NBA Conference finals are in full swing, several players turned up for their nation in the Olympics qualifiers. One such star was Dallas Mavericks talisman, Luka Doncic. The Don is guiding Slovenia to secure a place in the Tokyo Olympics. They recently defeated Venezuela 98-70 in the semifinals.
Doncic had a fantastic performance against Poland on the group stage and he replicated it against Venezuela. The Mavs star was looking in the mood even before the game started.
He performed some teardrop floaters during the pregame shootaround to keep the crowd entertained. As the game started he played around five minutes in the first quarter and that was enough for him to destroy the Venezuelan defense.
He came up with some exceptional passing chops. They double-teamed him but still, he found his way through. He finished the first quarter with seven points, four assists and three boards.
It was just the start for Doncic as he played the entire second quarter and ran the show for Slovenia. However, Venezuela kept fighting and was trailing by only seven at the break. He came up with alley-oops and picked some brilliant passes in the paint. Overall he had an even better second quarter.
Dallas Mavericks talisman Luka Doncic was simply toying with the Venezuelan defense
The Slovenians came out all guns blazing and dominated the third quarter to push the lead to 16. Doncic, on the other hand, was eyeing a triple-double after 30 minutes. He was one big problem for the Venezuela defenders. His sleek movements and turns were causing all sorts of trouble.
There was this one instance in the third quarter, where a defender had lost his footing and slipped in an attempt to guard Doncic. It was a hilarious scene and it definitely got a few laughs from the crowd. But it proves how difficult it is to keep pace with the Mavs talisman.
⚠️ Warning: “Slippery when guarding Luka” ⛸️#FIBAOQT | @luka7doncic 🇸🇮
📺 https://t.co/anQNE2HGRA pic.twitter.com/6TtRnFIOeY
— FIBA (@FIBA) July 3, 2021
The Don finished the night with 23 points, 13 assists, and nine rebounds. But it was far from comfortable as the Venezuelans were at their toes for most of the match.
Now Slovenia will face Lithuania in the finals. It will be another challenge for the 22-year old. He will be up against NBA stars like Domantas Sabonis and Jonas Valanciunas.
However one would still expect the Mavericks star to be ready for the challenge. At this point, all hopes are on him to guide Slovenia to their first Olympics.