The Los Angeles Lakers and star guard Luka Doncic are attempting to accomplish a few things these days, as the bulk of the team has headed across the Atlantic to Doncic’s home country of Slovenia, where the team is holding intense practices in Ljubljana. The hope from a team perspective is that the rebuilt new roster can begin to build some chemistry and familiarize themselves with each other. The other hope is that Doncic can put his stamp on the team as the new leader of the group, a role he shared–sometimes uncomfortably–with LeBron James over the past year-plus.
James is gone now, of course, and the Lakers have done what they can to recognize Doncic as the leader of the new group and build a roster around him that highlights his strengths and diminishes his weaknesses. The Lakers have nine new players on board, and five of the Top 8 players in minutes last year have departed.
That changeover in the layout of the team was the catalyst for the Lakers’ Slovenia camp, which began on Thursday with a team dinner and has continued through the weekend with hours-long practices.
Shooting Coach Spotted at Luka Doncic Camp
Leave it to sharp-eyed Hall of Fame NBA reporter Marc Stein–a former beat reporter for both the Mavericks and the Lakers–to notice an unusual presence in the stands at Doncic’s Lakers camp: Holger Geschwindner, the German coach best known for nudging Dirk Nowitzki into basketball and whose coaching style helped craft Nowitzki’s unique game.
Stein wrote on Twitter/X: “Asked today why Dirk Nowitzki’s shot doctor Holger Geschwindner is seen observing this Luka Dončić-led Lakers workout in Slovenia. A: Holger works closely with Luka on his Total Hoops Approach youth basketball initiatives as does The Search Institute via funding from Dončić.”
Doncic and Geschwinder became friendly during Doncic’s brief time playing with Nowitzki in Dallas, in 2018-19. That was Doncic’s rookie season and Nowitzki’s final year in the NBA.
Lakers Almost Entirely in Attendance at Slovenia Camp
The Lakers are almost unanimously in attendance at Doncic’s camp, which counts as a good sign for team bonding ahead of the 2026-27 season. The only player unable to attend is rookie Cameron Carr, who has a mandatory NBA rookie initiation program.
ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne speaking on ESPN LA, described how the trip figured to shake out.
“He’s chartering a plane, and on the plane there are, like, gift bags. And I think when they get to the hotel, there are going to be more gift bags. And there are all sorts of cool Slovenian things,” she said.
“It’s like a bachelorette trip. It really is. And then they’re going to go to Luka’s favorite restaurant, and they’re going to go fishing on Lake Bled which is this really fancy lake there. I guarantee there’s some golf involved at some point, there’s going to be some golf. There’s going to be bonding, it’s like five days. It’s a long trip to go on with your team.”
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