Viral Luka Doncic EuroBasket Footage Has Lakers Fans Crying Tears of Joy

While basketball is on hold in the United States, there’s no shortage of hoops action just across the pond in Europe with the EuroBasket 2025 in full swing. Among the several NBA superstars taking the court across four different countries is Slovenia’s Luka Doncic. The Los Angeles Lakers superstar has been on a mission with his national team this summer, and Saturday might have marked one of his biggest performances so far in the competition.

The five-time NBA All-Star and his native Slovenia put up a strong showing against Olympic silver medalist France. Though Doncic and company ultimately lost 103-95, the 26-year-old was phenomenal — scoring 39 points, pulling down 8 rebounds, and dishing 9 assists. While it was one of Doncic’s best games, the highlight came during a timeout late in the matchup.

You might wonder how. The answer lies in a now-viral clip in which Doncic, with Slovenia trailing by just two points, took charge, motivating his teammates and drawing plays on the board. This moment showcased Doncic’s remarkable passion and stunning leadership — qualities that have sparked discussion throughout the summer.

Before EuroBasket tipped off more than a week ago, some of Doncic’s Slovenian teammates remarked on how his move to Los Angeles has transformed him. They said he has become more vocal, stepping up as a leader ready to take responsibility for the national team. This is great news for Slovenian fans and equally thrilling for Lakers Nation, who expressed excitement over Doncic’s leadership on Saturday through social media.

Lakers Nation Cannot Control Their Emotions After Watching Luka Doncic’s Leadership Against France

It wasn’t just the Slovenians who were impressed by Luka Doncic taking matters into his own hands to lead his team against France; the Lakers Nation also shared the same feeling. In fact, you could even say that they were even happier than the Slovenian supporters. “Slim Luka, better conditioned Luka, Leadership Luka. Dayummm! This NBA season will be too sweet,” a fan wrote, as he couldn’t help but get excited for the upcoming season with this new, slimmer, and much-improved version of Luka.

However, he wasn’t alone, as more such reactions poured in, with another user commenting, “Welcome to Prime Luka.” Indeed, after going through a massive transformation, this has arguably been one of the best runs Doncic has been on. So far, throughout this stunning EuroBasket campaign for his native Slovenia, Doncic has been averaging 31.3 points, which is the best scoring average throughout the competition. Not just that, he’s also averaging 7.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game.

That’s a huge reason why the Los Angeles Lakers’ faithful cannot wait to see him in action this season for their team. “Lakers about to get the best version of Luka we’ve seen! Dammit, I can’t wait.” A fan said. At the same time, another person took things even further by claiming that the NBA isn’t ready for the point guard to have his first MVP season. “Bro. We got Luka dunking, hustling on defense and offense, and that shot clean? Y’all aren’t ready for this MVP season.” He commented.

However, somehow even these many compliments were not it, with fans from all over the world, thrilled to see Doncic in this new captain and leader role. Meanwhile, a fan credited the Dallas Mavericks for creating this new, rejuvenated version of the point guard. “Bruh, Mavs created a monster,” he wrote. Well, that’s not too far-fetched, given the Mavs GM Nico Harrison publicly stating that he traded Doncic due to his weight and conditioning issues, and this summer, he’s completely transformed himself.

Nonetheless, either way, this seems to be a great sign for the Lakers, who are willing to make a much deeper run into the playoffs in the upcoming season.