When a 18 year-old Luka Dončić led Slovenia to EuroBasket Gold 🥇

One of the biggest mysteries in recent NBA history is how Luka Dončić was not unanimously considered to be the Number 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, as some would argue that he had a Hall of Fame career as an 18 year-old before even setting foot in the NBA.

Having just turned 19 years old, Luka Dončic was a EuroLeague champion, the youngest ever EuroLeague MVP, Final Four MVP, a back-to-back EuroLeague Rising Star, 3-time ACB champion, an ACB MVP, a two-time ACB Best Young Player, a EuroBasket Champion, a EuroBasket All Tournament team member, and a EuroLeague All-Decade Team member. And despite all of that, he wasn’t even considered a top NBA draft prospects by some scouts.

But in the NBA Draft, three teams passed on Luka, despite everything that he had achieved. European basketball quite simply was not respected in the States, but that was all about to change.

In just 6 years in the NBA for the Dallas Mavericks, he became a 5x All-Star, 5x All-NBA First Team Member, the First Ever European NBA Scoring Champion, the Youngest Player Ever to lead the NBA in Triple Doubles, and the First Player Ever to lead the playoffs in Points, Rebounds, Assists, and Steals.