Rumors

After recording a historic triple-double against Belgium, Luka Doncic came close to another one against Israel, falling just one assist short. Still, the Los Angeles Lakers star led Slovenia to a crucial 106-96 victory over Israel, a result that sends France to the top of Group D, while both Slovenia and Israel must now wait for the outcome of the clash between Poland and Belgium. Dončić finished the game with 37 points, 11 rebounds, and nine assists, shooting 8/10 on two-pointers, 4/11 from beyond the arc, and a perfect 9/9 from the free-throw line.

EuroHoops.net

France took their third win in Group D at EuroBasket 2025, defeating previously unbeaten Poland 83-76. New York Knicks newcomer Guerschon Yabusele put on a show in a crucial win for France, scoring a national team career-high 36 points (12/20 FG, 6/12 3PT), while adding 6 rebounds and 2 blocks to his tally.

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We're accustomed to seeing Doncic score 30+ points in international play, but this year, an unusual detail is catching attention in Katowice, Poland: Luka appears to be the only player at EuroBasket 2025 with a personal bodyguard. The muscular guard shadows him everywhere—walking alongside Doncic from the tunnel to the locker room on game days, standing next to him during mixed-zone interviews, and even keeping watch during open practice sessions or pre-game shootarounds.

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Thanks to an admirable fourth quarter and despite the disappointment of losing to Poland in the last seconds, Israel got the crucial 80-69 win over France, which can be pivotal to the Group D rankings. It was the second win of Israel in the tournament after three games and the first defeat of France, with Deni Avdija with 23 points, eight rebounds, and five steals leading a balanced effort. “We had a tough loss yesterday, and I felt a little down, so today coming to the game with no excuses to beat one of the best teams of the tournament is a big deal, honestly, it’s one of the most fun wins I’ve had”, said Avdija

EuroHoops.net

Iztok Franko: My friend @coopmavs asked about this: after going 17 of 18 vs Poland, and 19 of 20 from the line against France, Luka Doncicc is at 36/38 or 95% at free-throws at EuroBasket. If we add 4 prep games the total is 68/81, or 84%, becasue of the 6 of 13 in the 1st prep game v GER.

x.com

Jordan Loyd was once again the hero for Poland, leading them to their second straight win at FIBA EuroBasket 2025. This time, he scored 27 points and delivered the decisive play—a tip-in off his own miss with 13 seconds left—to lift Poland past Israel 66-64. Israel still had a chance to steal the win, but Deni Avdija's final three-point attempt came up short, sealing Poland's celebration.

BasketNews

Loyd finished with 27 points, hitting five of his eight three-point attempts. In Poland's opening win over Slovenia, he had already showcased his form with 30 points and seven triples on just eight attempts.

BasketNews

First, it was Jordan Loyd for Poland, and now another EuroLeague star, Sylvain Francisco, stole the show and the 103-95 win from Luka Doncic. The Slovenian star was great with 39 points, nine assists, eight rebounds – plus five turnovers and a “T” – but France beat Slovenia with Francisco scoring 32, grabbing seven rebounds, dishing five assists, and making big plays when it counted the most.

EuroHoops.net

And speaking about facing Doncic and beating him, while the spotlight was on the Lakers star, the naturalized point guard of Poland, Jordan Loyd, answered: “One of the best players in the world will always have a lot of hype, news, and media around him. It’s pretty awesome to be on the court with him and a lot of respect to what he has done, but being on the other side, you use that as energy. And as a team, we used that as a motivation. We have to be humble, but on the other side, you’re going to respect us too. Luka is Luka, there’s no more credit and respect I can give to him, but tonight our team was better”.

EuroHoops.net

Luka Doncic had 34 points, nine assists, and five steals. Poland still started the Eurobasket with a home win, since they are the hosts of Group D in the tournament. Playing in front of a sold-out crowd, Poland prevailed 105-95, and 2022 history repeated itself. The naturalized guard of Poland, former NBA champion with the Toronto Raptors and currently with EuroLeague finalists Monaco, Jordan Loyd, had a big night scoring 19 of his 32 points in the first half, on five out of six threes. In total, he made seven out of eight. His 32 points are the second-best performance ever in a Eurobasket for Poland.

EuroHoops.net

EuroHoops: Coach Billups was in Poland showing support for Deni Avdija 🤝🔥 #Eurobasket

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Buss and Pelinka were part of a contingent of Lakers staff that included Kurt and Linda Rambis and director of player performance and health Dr. Leroy Sims, who made the flight from Los Angeles to Poland earlier this week to watch Dončić and the Slovenian national team open play against Poland on Thursday night in Katowice. “We just wanted to make a statement to Luka that we support what he does for his country. That’s really important to the Lakers when we have a player that’s the face of our franchise, just to show that support for him,” Pelinka said. “And it’s just great to see him with his teammates, interacting, having fun. As you said, he is in great shape, really committed to working hard this summer, and to be able to watch that in person was worth flying over the ocean to come be with him.”

New York Times

LA Lakers officials also came to Poland to show Luka their support, including GM Rob Pelinka and controlling owner and president Jeanie Buss. “Means a lot, it’s a long flight, like 11–12 hours, means a lot for them to be here to support me. We had a great lunch today, it was great to see them,” Dončić concluded.

EuroHoops.net

Dan Woike: Jeanie Buss and Rob Pelinka at Slovenia’s final practice before their opener tomorrow here in Poland.

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