Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Dončić has been cleared to return to the court after an injury scare over the weekend.
After limping off the court while playing for Slovenia during a EuroBasket exhibition on Saturday, Dončić will be on the court for his national team on Tuesday against Great Britain. Basketball Federation of Slovenia confirmed Dončić’s status on Monday afternoon.
Dončić has dealt with injuries throughout his career, with conditioning issues highlighted as part of the decision by the Dallas Mavericks to shockingly trade the star to the Lakers this past February. Dončić made a strong effort in the offseason to improve his physical conditioning, including playing for Slovenia this summer in EuroBasket, also known as the European Basketball Championship.
LOOK: Lakers’ Luka Dončić limps off court after cooking Latvia in EuroBasket warm-up game for Slovenia
Robby Kalland
During Saturday’s game against Latvia, Dončić went down when a teammate careened into his legs. Dončić signaled to be substituted out of the game and limped to the locker room. After the game, it was confirmed that the injury was minor, labeled as a knee contusion.
The slimmed-down version of Dončić has looked good in the EuroBasket warmup games, scoring 19 points against Germany and 26 points in the first half against Latvia prior to the injury.
The prospect of Dončić returning to the court on Tuesday should settle the minds of Lakers fans, who certainly did not want to see the cornerstone of the franchise’s future suffer a serious injury in an exhibition game.
The five-week EuroBasket tournament officially gets underway on Aug. 27 and Slovenia’s first game, against Poland, takes place the following day.
Slovenia is in Group C alongside Iceland, France, Poland, Belgium and Israel.
