Shortly after the Los Angeles Lakers ended their season—a conclusion Doncic was forced to watch from the bench due to a lingering muscle injury dating back to April—the star guard issued a statement detailing his plans for the summer.
Doncic has long prioritized representing Slovenia during NBA offseasons, whether with the Mavericks or the Lakers. But a pressing personal matter is now changing his course. In a post shared on Instagram, he explained:
“I love my daughters more than anything. They will always come first in my life. As I continue fighting for joint custody of both of them, I have been forced to make a difficult decision between traveling and playing with the Slovenian national team or being with my daughters this summer. Unfortunately, it has been very hard for me to see them over the past eight months.”
“I have always given everything to represent Slovenia, and it saddens me that I won’t be able to play for them this summer. But for now, my daughters and my responsibilities as a father are the priority.”
While 2026 marks the first summer without a European Championship, World Cup, or Olympic Games since the pandemic altered FIBA’s calendar, Slovenia still has two qualifying windows for the following year’s World Cup. The team leads Group H with three wins and one loss in four games. To complete the first round, they must travel to Estonia and host Sweden in early July. In the second round, starting in late August, they would enter Group L, facing Finland, France, and likely Hungary. Due to NBA schedule conflicts, Doncic missed the previous two windows.
For context, Luka Doncic is in the midst of a legal battle seeking joint custody of his two daughters, Gabriela and newborn Olivia, with ex-fiancée Anamaria Goltes. After their separation, Goltes moved to Slovenia with the children—a core reason behind Doncic’s decision to step away from national team duties this summer.
Additionally, his physical condition remains suboptimal. With a return to full health targeted for the end of May, he noted that “recovering” from his muscle injury “will be the priority” from a purely athletic standpoint, as he stated on the night of May 12.
