The Lakeshow Review

After weeks of exhibition contests, the FIBA EuroBasket Tournament kicked off earlier today, and saw Lakers star Luka Dončić along with his native Slovenia take on Poland during their tournament opener. Poland prevailed in a 105-95 victory, as they established an early lead which they did not relinquish for the rest of the match. The Polish side proved superior, as they featured four starters who tallied double figures in scoring, including a team high 32 points from guard Jordan Lloyd. Things continue to look somewhat bleak for the Slovenians, who went just 1-5 during the exhibition round (although they did endure a few games without Dončić, who was out with injury) and continue to look outmatched against opponents with deeper lineups. In order to make a dent in this tournament, Slovenia must look to get better production out of teammates not named Luka Dončić, otherwise it may be a short stint for them.

Luka, for his part, was excellent today. He scored a game high 34 points, to go with 4 boards, 9 assists, 5 steals and 2 blocks. He finished with a minty 7/14 from the field, and 17/18 from the free throw line. He also shot 3/9 from distance. Luka was fighting an uphill battle all game, as he did his best to keep his side afloat. He had a nice run before halftime, eventually slicing Poland’s early lead to just one point, before the half. Poland came back with a 15-3 run to open the second half, effectively sealing the game away. However, from a Lakers-centric perspective, Luka was certainly impressive today, and that’s a great sign heading into the regular season. Physically, he looks his best in some time, and it’s also evident on the film as far as his crisp movements and ability to get to his spots with ease. Unfortunately, he isn’t getting much support from the rest of the roster, with only two teammates registering double digits in scoring. Poland was well aware of the fact that Luka is the main engine behind his team’s offense, as they consistently blitzed and trapped him on most of his pick and roll possessions. Luka was effective at splitting those double teams and getting to the middle of the floor, where he was either making mid-rangers, finishing at the rim or getting to the line at will after collapsing the defense. It’s clearly a one-man show for Slovenia at this point, as Poland pretty much ignored the roll man during most of Luka’s ball screen actions. Poland kept trapping with their big, which left a smaller guard as the low man whenever Luka split the trap, which led to many easy finishes or fouls drawn at the rim. It’s clear that Luka was being aggressive and trying to will his team to the finish line. Unfortunately, the ancillary contributions aren’t there at the moment.

In order to maximize their offensive output, Slovenia must get more productivity from their roll man during Luka ball screens. As of right now, the roll man is simply a decoy. But even so, with Poland blitzing on nearly every ball screen, they should at least be able to short roll with their roll man, so that it collapses the defense and creates open shots for teammates on the perimeter. It looks like they might not have the personnel to play that way. With that said, they most likely will not get very far with Luka trying to split the trap and going 1v5 on every play. They simply need more activity and production from other players. This is however, unsurprising as Slovenia entered the tournament as one of the least talented squads. They also don’t seem to be the most well-coached bunch, as their offensive playcalling and sets appear to be fairly mundane. It didn’t matter much today though, as Poland simply outplayed them. They shot a scorching 59% from the field, to go with 54% shooting from range. Tough to overcome that level of efficiency from the opposition no matter how good the coaching is.

Moving forward, Slovenia will have to regroup and find the right adjustments if they wish to make their FIBA journey a fruitful one. From a Lakers’ standpoint, it’s hard to complain about much when it comes to Luka and his play. He’s looked terrific so far, going back to the exhibition rounds. He looks slender, agile and locked in. All things that are great to see. Tonight, he was feeling the love from the Lakers’ brass, including Jeanie Buss and Rob Pelinka who were both present at courtside for today’s matchup. Can’t imagine that they aren’t pleased with what they’re seeing, as are many Lakers fans. Luka’s defense today was another high point, as he was very active as a help defender as well as disrupting the passing lanes. He generated his fair share of steals and turnovers with his defensive intensity. He’s certainly playing to win, showing the necessary commitment on both ends of the floor thus far. It’ll be interesting to see how far his team can go with Luka acting as virtually the sole driving force. With an early exit, at least we’ll see Luka head to training camp early, with some healthy game experience under his belt. But knowing the competitor that Luka is, I’d like to see them advance deep into the tournament which will yield a very locked in and sharp version of Luka for Opening Night. We’ll see how things shape out. Until then, Go Lakers and Go Slovenia.