The basketball scene in Ljubljana could hardly look more different depending on which side of the city you were watching.

At Stožice Arena, Luka Doncic was spending time with his Los Angeles Lakers teammates, working out and helping bring his new team together in Slovenia. At the same time, the Slovenian national team was preparing for an important stretch of World Cup qualifying without the player who has been at the center of the country’s basketball identity for nearly a decade.

That unusual situation became even more striking after veteran Slovenian center Alen Omic was asked about Doncic’s absence following Slovenia’s 85-78 loss to Montenegro. Omic made it clear that the national team and Doncic were keeping their distance while he dealt with his personal obligations. “No, he did not speak. He has his obligations. We leave him alone, he leaves us alone. Let him sort out what he needs to do. I hope this all ends as soon as possible, so that he can come help the national team. But we need everyone; it’s not just about him. Every player is welcome. But it’s true that I, who am the oldest, expect even more from everyone.”

That answer gives a glimpse into the strange position Slovenia finds itself in. The country is trying to survive a major qualifying campaign without Doncic, while the Lakers star remains in Slovenia and is actively involved with his NBA teammates.

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Why Doncic Is Missing From Slovenia’s World Cup Push

Doncic’s absence is not being treated as a simple decision to skip national-team duty.

The Lakers star explained his situation himself, making it clear that his family obligations had forced him to make a difficult choice.

“I love my daughters more than anything, they are always first in my life. While I am fighting for joint custody of my daughters, I was forced to make a difficult decision between traveling and playing for the Slovenian national team and spending time with my daughters this summer.”

Slovenian Basketball Federation president Matej Erjavec also confirmed that Doncic had wanted to play.

“Luka wanted to play at least in the home games, meaning in July against Sweden and now against Hungary, but we soon realized that with all his obligations in the legal battle for custody of his children, that would not be possible.”

Doncic is not simply choosing the Lakers over Slovenia. According to the federation, he had hoped to take part in the home games before it became clear that his legal obligations would prevent him from doing so.

His absence is therefore happening at a particularly difficult time for the national team.

Slovenia Does Not Have Much Room for Error

Slovenia entered the second round of European qualifying at 3-3, tied with Estonia and Sweden around the third and final automatic qualifying spot in Group L.

France leads the group at 5-1, Finland is second at 4-2, while Estonia, Sweden and Slovenia are all 3-3. Hungary sits at 1-5.

Only the top three teams will qualify for the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Qatar, leaving Slovenia with very little room for error.

The problem is not simply that Slovenia has to win. It has to beat the teams around it and find a way to take a game from one of the teams currently above it. With head-to-head results also playing a role in the tiebreakers, every result against a direct rival carries added weight.

That makes the timing of Doncic’s absence hard to ignore.

Slovenia is not sitting safely inside the qualification places. It is fighting for the final spot, and it has to do so without the player who has been at the center of its biggest basketball moments for years.

That is the real cost of having Doncic unavailable right now.

There is a reason Slovenia’s current situation feels so unusual.

Doncic has been tied to the country’s biggest basketball moments since he helped Slovenia win its first EuroBasket title in 2017 at just 18 years old. He later scored 48 points against Argentina in Slovenia’s Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020, before leading the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup in scoring at 27 points per game.

So his absence is not simply the loss of another talented player.

Slovenia has spent years building its national-team identity around a player who has repeatedly delivered on its biggest international stages. Now, with qualification on the line, the team has to find a way forward without him.

That makes Omic’s response even more telling.

He did not suggest there was a fight between Doncic and the national team. He described something much simpler: distance.

“We leave him alone, he leaves us alone.”

But Omic also made clear that Slovenia cannot spend this qualifying campaign waiting for one player.

“But we need everyone; it’s not just about him.”

That is the reality facing Slovenia. Doncic’s importance is obvious, but the team still has to win with the players who are available.

While Slovenia tries to keep its World Cup campaign alive without Doncic, the Lakers star has been using his time in the country for a very different purpose.

He hosted a four-day offseason retreat for the Lakers in Ljubljana and Lake Bled, personally covering the expenses and arranging private travel for 14 teammates.

The team also held two-hour practices at Stožice Arena under assistant coach Greg St. Jean, giving the players time to work together away from the usual NBA offseason routine.

But the trip was about more than basketball.

The group spent time around Ljubljana and Lake Bled before visiting the outdoor court connected to Doncic’s childhood. The court had previously been refurbished with his involvement, including upgraded surfaces, seating, lighting and his No. 77 logo.

For the Lakers’ newer players, the trip offered a look at the place that shaped their franchise centerpiece long before he became an NBA superstar. For Doncic, it was a chance to bring his teammates into his world and build time together away from the normal NBA routine.

That matters as the Lakers enter a new phase.

Doncic’s Leadership Is Becoming More Visible

The Slovenia trip also fits into something Doncic had already started doing with the Lakers.

In October 2025, he organized a private Porsche Driving Experience in Southern California as a team-building event for members of the Lakers organization.

This time, the gesture was much bigger. He brought the group to his home country, arranged the trip and covered the expenses himself.

The timing matters, too.

With LeBron James leaving the Lakers for Philadelphia, Doncic is entering the 2026-27 season as the team’s central figure. The Slovenia retreat does not, by itself, define his leadership. But it does offer a clear example of him taking initiative away from the court.

He is creating time for teammates to spend together, bringing newer players into a place that means something to him and giving the group an experience outside the normal NBA routine.

For a Lakers team entering a new chapter, those actions carry more weight than a simple offseason vacation.

His Father Is About to Bring Slovenia’s Basketball Program Even Closer to the Lakers

There is one more connection between these two worlds, and it is coming in November.

Slovenian Basketball Federation president Matej Erjavec and Sporting Director Sasa Doncic, Luka’s father, are expected to travel to Los Angeles to meet with Lakers officials.

This is not a personal family visit. It is an official federation mission aimed at building a working relationship between Slovenia and the Lakers.

Erjavec has said the federation wants to establish the kind of relationship with Los Angeles that it previously had with the Dallas Mavericks during Doncic’s time in Texas.

The goal is to create clearer communication around international commitments, training and player availability.

This summer has shown how complicated those commitments can become when Doncic’s national-team responsibilities collide with obligations away from basketball. Now Slovenia wants a more direct line of communication with the NBA organization that employs its biggest star.

The result is an unusual convergence of all three parts of Doncic’s basketball life: Slovenia is trying to qualify for the World Cup without him, the Lakers have come to Slovenia for an offseason retreat built around him, and his father is preparing to meet with the Lakers on behalf of the Slovenian federation.

With the standings so tight, Slovenia has to keep pushing with the players available. Omic’s message captured that balance.

He hopes Doncic can eventually return, but until then, “we need everyone; it’s not just about him.”

Meanwhile, Doncic’s connection to Slovenia has hardly disappeared.

He may not be able to help his country on the court this summer, but he has brought his NBA teammates into the country that made him. His father is preparing to strengthen the relationship between that country and the Lakers. And the franchise itself is beginning a new chapter with Doncic at its center.

That is what makes this summer so unusual.

Slovenia needs Luka Doncic on the court. The Lakers are now entering their next era with Doncic at the center of it. And for now, both sides of his basketball life are unfolding in the same place.