The Los Angeles Lakers’ summer minicamp in Slovenia was designed to build on-court chemistry, but it proved to reveal just how deeply anchored Luka Doncic’s influence is both on and off the hardwood. Speaking live from the Lakers Youth Foundation Golf Tournament at Pechanga on ESPN’s Mason & Ireland Show, the team’s now second longest-tenured player, Bronny James reflected on the team’s excursion to Ljubljana, confirming that Doncic commands legendary stature in his home nation.

Host Steve Mason was recently in Slovenia right before the Lakers arrived. Speaking to Bronny, as well as Kevon Looney, he marveled at the intense national pride in Slovenia when it came to their hometown hero. He joked that mentioning the superstar guard’s name is enough to unlock any door and that Doncic could “run for president tomorrow.”

Bronny agreed without hesitation. “Oh yeah,” the 21-year-old said, validating Doncic’s national clout in Ljubljana. “Yeah. I was saying we was with him, you know, he was hooking us up and getting us, you know, the right places in Slovenia to see the most out of the country.”

Doncic reportedly dropped half a million dollars to charter a plane for the entire Lakers roster and funded the multi-day minicamp in August, bringing the entire roster overseas for off-season workouts, rounds of golf, and cultural immersion. Among the sightseeing, Doncic even arranged for them to visit one of the most exclusive nightclubs in the city. His fame in his homeland was so intense, some fans waited outside their practices in the rain and he engaged his fans with pictures and autographs.

For Bronny, who enters his first NBA campaign where he’s not his dad’s teammate, experiencing Doncic’s hospitality offered a first-hand look at the franchise cornerstone’s burgeoning leadership style. Whether guiding teammates to exclusive Ljubljana spots or treating the roster to local culture, Doncic’s pull across the country proved absolute.

While Bronny is now the most tenured Laker after Austin Reaves, 30-year-old Kevon Looney is the eldest of the team. The newly acquired veteran center provided additional context on the trip’s impact, explaining how Doncic’s gesture set a compelling standard for the locker room. Looney, who spent a decade with the Golden State Warriors before joining Los Angeles, emphasized that an international player-led trip was completely unprecedented in his career.

“I mean, I’ve been in the league for a while, and that was my first time doing something like that,” Looney told Mason and Ireland. “To go to somebody’s country and bring us all out there and spending that much time together. That’s—I never did that before. So that just shows his character, showing that he really wants to win. He wants people to know his background, why he is how he is.”

Beyond luxury hospitality and high-end dining, the itinerary included deep roots-level bonding. The squad toured the public childhood court where Doncic played as a child and visited a local children’s hospital to connect with fans. Apart rom that, social media pages of the local sights were ecstatic to welcome the Lakers.

“We didn’t need anything. As long as he said Luka’s name, we was good,” Looney added regarding the trip’s seamless access. “So, it was a great time. We got to not only just bond as a team, but we got to go to his court they used to play at as a kid. We got to go to the kids hospital and just meet the people, and it was a great experience.”

Looney praised Doncic’s willingness to reveal his authentic self away from the bright lights of Hollywood, noting that seeing his off-court personality cemented his status as the squad’s undisputed leader.

“He’s a great player and a great leader,” Looney said. “He likes to show what he can do on the court, and we got to see his personality off the court. So it was great, and you know, we going to follow him to run through a wall for him.”

With training camp around the corner, Doncic’s European retreat appears to have served its purpose for a reworked roster. As teammates like Jarred Vanderbilt jokingly teased applying for Slovenian passports following the journey, Bronny and Kevon’s comments made it clear Doncic’s unseen leadership has officially galvanized the Purple and Gold.