LA Lakers assistant coach set to repeat his Dallas Mavericks trick to keep close eye on Luka Doncic this summer

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The Los Angeles Lakers gave Luka Doncic permission to represent Slovenia at the EuroBasket tournament.

Luka Doncic is currently undergoing his first full offseason with the Los Angeles Lakers after getting traded from the Dallas Mavericks.

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It’s also worth noting that Doncic will play for Slovenia in the EuroBasket tournament this summer. While letting a star player compete in the summer could be risky, the Lakers are putting an extra plan in place to monitor Doncic’s progress.

Greg St. Jean will join Luka Doncic at FIBA EuroBasket tournament

The Lakers have no plans to repeat the Mavs’ mistake by alienating their future face of the franchise in Doncic from his coaching staff.

According to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, assistant coach Greg St. Jean will join Slovenia’s national team staff this summer to serve as a bridge between the player and the Lakers.

“Doncic will also have a direct conduit to the Lakers’ coaching staff with him this summer. Lakers assistant coach Greg St. Jean will serve as an assistant coach with the Slovenian national team, sources told ESPN, as Doncic competes for his home country in the FIBA EuroBasket tournament,” another ESPN article stated.

St. Jean isn’t new to the task either. He did the same in 2022 when he joined Slovenia’s staff during Doncic’s last EuroBasket appearance — a role that’s expected to help the Lakers keep a consistent eye on their star through the offseason.

Luka Doncic is ‘motivated’ ahead of the 2025-26 season

Despite playing in just 28 games, Doncic already showed signs of his super stardom during the 2024-25 NBA season for the LA Lakers.

After all, in those games, he averaged a stunning 28.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 7.5 assists per game. The numbers are expected to improve as Doncic is ‘motivated’ because of how the Lakers have treated him.

“Additionally, Doncic remains motivated by how the Dallas Mavericks treated him in the aftermath of the trade and how the Lakers’ season ended, and has committed to an offseason training and nutrition program, sources told ESPN,” McMenamin added.

It’s important for the Lakers and Doncic to be on the same page with the superstar’s looming contract extension next season.

For now, they are heading in the right direction as Doncic has lost some weight in the offseason. On the other hand, Mark Walter’s takeover of the Lakers has given the franchise immense financial resources.