Luka Dončić

Luka Dončić
No. 7 – Real Madrid
Position Point guard / Shooting guard
League Liga ACB
EuroLeague
Personal information
Born (1999-02-28) February 28, 1999
Ljubljana, Slovenia
Nationality Slovenian
Listed height 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight 218 lb (99 kg)
Career information
Playing career 2014–present
Career history
2014–present Real Madrid
2014–2015 → Real Madrid B
Career highlights and awards

Luka Dončić (born February 28, 1999) is a Slovenian professional basketball player who plays for Real Madrid of the Liga ACB and EuroLeague. His current official listed height is 2.01 m (6'7"),[1] and his listed weight is 99 kg (218 lbs.).[2]

He is considered one of the most promising young talents of European basketball, and one of the best international players of his generation.[3][4]

Early career

Dončić started his career at the youth teams of Union Olimpija. On April 2012, he won the MVP in the Under-13 Lido di Roma Tournament, scoring 54 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in the final against Lazio.[5]

On September 2012, at 13 years of age, he signed a 5-year contract with Real Madrid.[6] Previously, on February 2012, Dončić played with Real Madrid in the Minicopa ACB 2012, on loan from Union Olimpija. In the final, he scored 20 points against FC Barcelona.[7]

After outstanding performances in his seasons in the Under-16 team, Dončić plays for the Under-18 team and the farm team of Real Madrid, Real Madrid B for the 2014–15 season, where he becomes one of the leaders of the team, averaging 14.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 3.1 assists, and helping his team get the first position of the 2014–15 Liga EBA Group B, in the Spanish 4th Division.

In 2015, he won the Ciutat de L'Hospitalet Tournament, and was selected to the All-Tournament Team, despite being two years younger than the rest of the team.[8] In May 2015, he also won the Next Generation Tournament, where he was selected MVP, after he helped his team beat defending champion Crvena Zvezda, in the final.[9]

Professional career

On April 30, 2015, Dončić became the youngest player to debut with Real Madrid in the Liga ACB (the top-tier Spanish League), at the age of 16 years, 2 months, and 2 days. He scored a three-pointer in Real Madrid's win against Unicaja. In the history of the Liga ACB competition, he is the third youngest player to make a debut, behind Ricky Rubio (who was 14 years and 11 months when he debuted), and Ángel Rebolo (who was 15 years and 3 months when he debuted).[10] Dončić also participated in the 2015 ACB Playoffs, and the 2015 FIBA Intercontinental Cup.

In the 2015–16 season, Dončić became a part of the main 12-man roster of Real Madrid in every competition, including the 2015–16 ACB season (being the youngest player of the league)[11] and the Euroleague 2015–16 season. In week 8 of the Liga ACB, against Bilbao Basket, he set his personal best in the Spanish League in: points scored (15), rebounds (6), assists (4), and PIR (22), also setting the records in scoring and PIR for a player under age 17, in the history of the Liga ACB.[12]

National team career

Dončić was set to play at the 2014 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship, with Slovenia's junior national team, he but had to withdraw from the tournament, due to an injury. In December 2014, he played with the Slovenia national under-16 team in a friendly game tournament in Hungary. Dončić averaged 35.3 points and 7.6 rebounds, while shooting 81% from two-point field goal range, and 57% on three-pointers.[8]

On September 22, 2016, Dončić announced that he will represent Slovenia for the rest of his career, after he was previously linked with possibly representing Spain.[13]

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  PIR  Performance Index Rating
 Bold  Career high

Note: The EuroLeague is not the only competition in which the player participated for the team during the season. He also played in domestic competition, and regional competition if applicable.

EuroLeague

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG PIR
2015–16 Real Madrid 12 0 11.1 .407 .313 .882 2.3 2.0 .2 .3 3.5 6.2
Career 12 0 11.1 .407 .313 .882 2.3 2.0 .2 .3 3.5 6.2

Player profile

In his early basketball career, Dončić has been able to easily compete against players that are older than him. His combination of skills, athleticism, basketball intelligence, and competitiveness are hard to find. He brings unique versatility, as he can dribble with both hands, rebound, shoot with range, pass, or score, in a variety of ways. He can play both as a point guard and shooting guard.[4] In terms of his player development at a young age, his youth age trajectory is similar to that of Ricky Rubio.[14]

Trophies and awards

Real Madrid

Real Madrid (youth teams)

Individual awards

Personal life

His father is Saša Dončić, former Slovenian basketball player of Serbian origin, who also played for the Slovenian national basketball team, and his mother is Mirjam Poterbin, former Slovenian model and dancer, who was world champion of dance with the Urška dance group. Luka Dončić started playing basketball, soccer, and judo at the age of 6, in the Miran Jarc primary school, in Ljubljana. Later, he decided to focus on basketball, and joined the youth teams of Union Olimpija.[17]

References

External links

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