Luka Doncic made an emotional announcement just days after the Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated from the NBA playoffs by the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Lakers star revealed on Instagram that he will not play for Slovenia this summer because he wants to focus on spending time with his daughters during an ongoing custody situation with former fiancée Anamaria Goltes.The message was shared in both English and Slovenian. Doncic explained that family has to come first right now, even though missing games for his national team was a painful decision. The news came shortly after the Lakers were swept 4-0 by Oklahoma City in the Western Conference semifinals. According to ESPN and TMZ, Doncic has been dealing with personal challenges away from basketball for several months while also recovering from a hamstring injury that ended his playoff run early.
Luka Doncic Says His Daughters Are His Main Priority Over Slovenia Basketball This Summer
Doncic spoke honestly about how difficult the past several months have been for him personally. In his Instagram statement, he explained why he decided to step away from Slovenia basketball this offseason.“I love my daughters more than anything, and they will always come first in my life,” Doncic wrote. “As I continue working toward joint custody of my daughters, I have been forced to make a difficult decision between traveling and playing for the Slovenian national team and being with my daughters this summer.”He also shared that spending time with them has not been easy recently.“Unfortunately, it has been made extremely difficult for me to see them over the past eight months,” Doncic wrote.The 27-year-old added that the decision hurt because representing Slovenia has always meant a lot to him.“I have given everything to representing Slovenia and I am disappointed that I will not be able to play for my country this summer,” Doncic wrote. “But right now, my daughters and my responsibilities as a father are my priority.”Before the announcement, Doncic was expected to play during Slovenia’s upcoming FIBA World Cup qualifying games. Instead, he will spend the offseason recovering and focusing on family matters after dealing with a Grade 2 left hamstring strain suffered on April 2.Even with the injury, Doncic finished the regular season as the NBA scoring leader with 33.5 points per game, along with 7.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists in 64 appearances.After the Lakers’ playoff elimination, Doncic also spoke about the season and his teammates.“Well, I don’t think the season ended the way we wanted,” Doncic said. “Oklahoma is a great team. And I have a lot of respect for what my teammates have done. They fought hard in every game.