There may be one less NBA-star-led country Canada has to worry about this summer if things don’t turn around for Slovenia.
Luka Doncic and co. fell to Croatia, 108-92, in their Olympic qualifying opener in Greece on Tuesday.
The winner of said Olympic qualifying tournament (OQT) will join Canada and Australia in Group A for the 2024 Paris Olympics, along with the winner of the Spain OQT.
And although Doncic stuffed the stat sheet, as he often does — finishing the game with 26 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists — it wasn’t enough for Slovenia to avoid a tournament-opening loss.
They were thwarted by Croatia who scored their most points ever at any FIBA OQT. They were led by Dario Saric, a current NBA free agent who spent last season with the Golden State Warriors. The former 12th overall pick in 2014 notched a triple-double of his own — his first for the senior national team — as he finished with 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
It was dominance for the Croatians the entire way, as they were up by as many as 29 points before taking a 16-point victory.
For Doncic, it was the latest blow in what’s been some tough defeats for him as of late. The NBA MVP finalist was barely two weeks removed from his Dallas Mavericks losing in the NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics.
He swiftly made his way to Greece, hoping to help his homeland qualify for just their second Olympics.
Slovenia previously qualified in 2020, also largely thanks to Doncic as he finished with a 31-point triple-double in the OQT final — earning tournament MVP for his efforts. His heroics in 2020 didn’t stop once they made it to Tokyo, however, as he then led the Slovenes to a semifinal appearance where they ultimately fell to France in a nail-biting finish.
Slovenia must now beat New Zealand on Thursday to have any chance of keeping its Olympic hopes alive.
Doncic was dealing with injuries during the NBA Finals when Dallas lost to Boston, and he was clearly laboring at times on Tuesday as well. But he insisted he would keep going.
“It’s an honour for me to play for my country,” Doncic said. “A lot of times, there’s going to be injuries. But I just see a big honor for me to play for my country. We’re 2 million people and to represent my country, it means everything to me.”
The OQT in Greece consists of Slovenia, Croatia, New Zealand, Greece, Egpyt and the Dominican Republic.
— with files from Associated Press.