The Luka Relationship

Obviously, when it comes to building rosters and selecting free agents, on-court fit and chemistry should be the first thing a front office looks at. But when that fit goes beyond the court and trickles into the locker room and off of the court as well, there is an opportunity for something very special. For Dragic and Doncic is all that they have ever known with one another.

Doncic and Dragic have been pals for over a decade, dating back to when Luka was just 7, sweeping the gym after his father Saša and Goran's practices and games together. In fact, Doncic's father played with Dragic for multiple years, with the pair spending a two-year stint together at Slovan of the Adriatic League, and another year at Union Olimpija (Luka's first professional club) in 2007-2008.

That relationship would evolve from there, with Dragic serving as a sort of brother/uncle/mentor like figure for young Doncic throughout the majority of his basketball development. That relationship would be strengthened even further when the two bunked together as roommates during EuroBasket 2017, where they would go on to lead the Slovenian National Team on a Cinderella run for a gold medal. Throughout that title run, the pair would face down and defeat the likes of European basketball powers such as Latvia, Serbia, and Spain, that latter of which was bolstered by seven current or former NBA players.

Following the unlikely championship run, Dragic would take home the EuroBasket 2017 MVP award, averaging 22.6 points on 48.5-percent shooting (38.5-percent from deep), to go along with 5.1 assists and 4.4 rebounds. Meanwhile, Doncic was named to the All-Tournament team as well at the age of just 18, scoring 14.3 points per contest, while adding 8.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists playing off of the ball, and with Dragic as the point guard.

"He's a born winner," Dragic said of Doncic then. "No, I'm not kidding, he already has a lot of trophies and medals. I'm happy for him. Mark my words, he's going to be one of the best in the whole world."

After spending the next year winning titles and MVPs in both EuroLeague and the Spanish league, Doncic would then move on to the NBA in the 2018-19 season where he had a historically excellent rookie campaign for the Mavericks, resulting in him heading into the summer as the favorite to win Rookie of the Year. For Dragic however, none of that was a surprise. Since Luka first took the court competitively over a decade ago, Dragic has known how special his protege would become.

"He doesn't surprise me," Dragic said to reporters back in December. "I've known him since he was a kid and we're together until now with the national team. It's nothing new. Some were skeptical because of his EuroLeague background but he proved them wrong."

Then, when the two faced off against one another as adversaries for the first time in their lives this past March, in front of hundreds of their Slovenian countrymen who made the trip to the United States just to see the two face off, that relationship came full-circle.

"It was great," Doncic told the media in attendance after the 105-99 loss in Miami. "Honestly, maybe for the first time in my career, I was nervous before the game. It was different for me, but it was a special night. All the people here. A lot of Slovenians. Playing against Goran for the first time. It was just different."

The uniquely close bond between the two, also leads to a logical question: Could Dragic be a Dallas Mavericks target this summer? It is certainly a possibility, and as it happens, Dragic and Luka have the same agent in Bill Duffy. Yes, the same Bill Duffy whom the Mavs rekindled their relationship with this past summer, and who just so happens to be one of the most powerful agents in the league today.

So, with that, we have even more connective tissue lending itself to the idea that Luka and Dragic could once again be reunited as teammates. But can we tell if their relationship will translate to success on an NBA court? Let's examine.