The old California rivalry took a whole new turn when EuroBasket’s heated competition spilled over. The Los Angeles Lakers – Sacramento Kings matchup brought Luka Doncic and Dennis Schroder face-to-face in a regular-season NBA setting for the first time since their summer clash. Words were exchanged, tempers flared, but the Lakers comfortably won the home game. Who got the last word, though?

Doncic had murmured something that instigated Schroder. It got a big reaction from the Kings player. The incident happened in the third quarter, right after the Slovenian interrupted Schroder on a pass with a swipe at his elbow. He turned around and allegedly told Doncic he’d slap him if he did it again.

Latest footage showcases Doncic reacting to that with, “All talk. I wish you could swing.”

That triggered Schroder.

“Come to the back,” he challenged Doncic. “I’m not the n—- to talk to.”

The Lakers player seemed to dismiss it immediately, like he knew Schroder wouldn’t follow through on his threat.

Luka Doncic delivered the most scorching burn when guard Nique Clifford was at the free-throw line. Schroder was trying to talk trash.

“I’ll beat the s— out of you,” Schroder screamed in Doncic’s face.

Doncic was having the time of his life throughout the game.

At some point, he even taunted Schroder, telling him, “You should’ve signed that contract, baby!”

This line in particular got the internet gasping. But why? Because that’s an old niche reference that’s come full circle.

Luka Doncic waited three years to poke Dennis Schroder

Dennis Schroder put the basketball world on notice in 2022. Germany faced Slovenia in the group stage of EuroBasket. Things got heated enough for Luka Doncic, then a Dallas Mavericks star, to break up a fight between his teammate and Schroder.

The German player was also on the Lakers’ radar in 2022. They reportedly offered him a four-year, $84 million extension. But he turned it down for a 1-year deal, hoping for a bigger payday later. It backfired, and Schroder would leave LA at the end of that contract, bounce between teams, and arrive in Sacramento.

Schroder’s decision led him to miss the Lakers’ new look since Doncic’s arrival. After that seismic trade in February 2025, he got into shape and went to EuroBasket. There, his rivalry with Schroder was revived. Germany beat Slovenia in a quarterfinal thriller on the way to the EuroBasket 2025 title.

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Then the rivalry carried over to the NBA, with the Lakers beating the Kings in the 2025-26 preseason. The two stars did not shake hands after that game. And months later, they’d beat the Kings again last night.

The transcontinental rivalry stemmed from mutual admiration and competition. Doncic at one point said, “He’s talking too much, I love it,” after Schroder spewed a range of expletives at him.

Doncic has so far dominated the head-to-head record, 10-5, during their overlapping NBA careers. But Schroder has been far superior at the EuroBasket stage. It’s a shame we don’t get to see what they would combine for on the Lakers.