Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic and recent NBA championship winner Vlatko Cancar are among the 20 players named to the extended Slovenia squad for the upcoming FIBA Basketball World Cup co-hosted by Japan, Philippines and Indonesia.
(2022 Getty Images)
Luka Doncic has been named in Slovenia’s 20-player extended roster for the upcoming FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023.
The 24-year-old Dallas Mavericks star is one of two NBA players to make Aleksander Sukelic’s squad for the showpiece, with recent NBA championship winner Vlatko Cancar of the Denver Nuggets the other USA-based name on the list.
Tokyo 2020 Olympians Klemen Prepelic, Zoran Dragic, and Mike Tobey also feature.
Slovenia will start their Basketball World Cup campaign in Okinawa, Japan, where they will compete in Group F alongside Cape Verde, Georgia, and Venezuela.
Should they advance to the second phase, they will meet teams from Group E, made up of Germany, Finland, Australia, and Japan.
Slovenia’s best finish at a World Cup was in 2014 where they finished in seventh. More recently, they finished fourth at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in 2021 and made the quarter-finals of EuroBasket 2022.
In addition to crowning a world champion, the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup will also act as a direct qualifier for Paris 2024. The top two finishing teams from Europe will be allocated a quota spot for the next Olympic Games.