Lakers Already Bonding During Luka Doncic Slovenia Trip

NBA basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers, Slovenia's Luka Doncic attends a "Stay in Play" event organised by the Luka Doncic Foundation to help young players, in Rome on June 26, 2026. Doncic is part of the ownership group of a new basketball club in Rome. The group bought the Italian team Vanoli Cremona and moved it to Rome, bringing top-level basketball back to the capital. (Photo by Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP via Getty Images) Getty

The Los Angeles Lakers roster is in the early portion of the Slovenia vacation/mini camp adventure run by Luka Doncic, but they already seem happy together. Doncic came up with the idea of inviting all teammates to his home country to both work on forming NBA chemistry together and to have fun getting to know each other. The Lakers lost a large percentage of players from last season and added new faces.

Team chemistry is needed to thrive early, so Luka came up with the idea of a fun August trip together before they’re back in the United States for training camp.  Photos have leaked from the first day and change of the Lakers’ trip:

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All smiles are on the Lakers’ faces to show them enjoying the team dinners and other activities together. Doncic put in work to come up with a full schedule of both fun and productive things for the franchise to do. New teammates like Walker Kessler and Quentin Grimes are getting to fit into the team dynamic before the offseason even ends.

Dinner photos show all positive vibes and the roster enjoying each other towards the tail end of the offseason fun time. Luka is seated next to new teammate Ziaire Williams with the players building more chemistry.

Why Luka Doncic Deserves Credit

The Lakers have a tough season coming up due to the Western Conference being loaded at the top. All three top contenders of the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Minnesota Timberwolves all have rosters viewed significantly above the Lakers.

Losing LeBron James this offseason was the biggest news since it meant losing major talent at the top of the roster. Other role players like Rui Hachimura, Marcus Smart, and Luke Kennard created more uncertainty for Lakers fans. However, the team made these moves with the idea of building a roster around Doncic.

This makes it more impressive that Luka spent this much time and effort putting together a trip for all his teammates to enjoy his country. Doncic is showing leadership qualities that will be needed for any chance of success. The Lakers are banking on Luka and Austin Reaves being the top two players. Doncic is at least filling that role early before training camp even begins.

This Could Help Luka Doncic’s MVP Case

Pundits are already breaking down the NBA MVP race with the usual favorites of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, and Victor Wembanyama as the top three names. Doncic is right behind them, but he’s yet to seriously contend for the MVP as a top-two candidate.

This season could see Luka benefiting from the lower expectations of a lackluster roster in a difficult conference. Doncic’s leadership could land him some early momentum if the Lakers start off hot and fans tie it to this minicamp creating chemistry.

Head coach JJ Redick will hope to lead the Lakers to the postseason, but it all falls on Luka. The Lakers seemed content to build a roster with the mindset of Doncic having high usage and running the offense all game long. Success coming thanks to Luka could land him a better MVP narrative this season.

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