"I know how much effort he worked this summer" - Boban Marjanovic believes Luka Doncic can win the MVP this coming season
Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic's former teammate, Boban Marjanovic, is unsurprised to see the Slovenian native's body transformation this summer. According to Marjanovic, Doncic's focus has always been to win, and if that meant getting in the best physical shape possible, the Slovenian native would do everything he could to achieve that.
"Luka is the best. Luka is like a hard worker. He's always in the gym, he always works out. He always competes. And this is what he wants to do. He wants the best of himself and he's really best, you know, like all these moves that he does right now. He works on it and basically he is gifted to make every move that he wants even when he sees on a video he is capable of making moves immediately even better than some guy shown on video like the top basketball players in the world, he basically can do immediately. He's super strong, super powerful," Marjanovic recently said in an appearance on Yahoo! Sports Daily.
Doncic is primed to win the MVP award
Now in the best shape of his career, there's more optimism for Luka to finally nab the MVP award this coming season, with the expectation that he will miss fewer games due to injury. It also helps that the 6'7" guard is coming off a season wherein he was traded by his former team, the Dallas Mavericks, which sets up the narrative of this year being some sort of vengeance tour for him.
In addition, Doncic will be entering his first full season with the Lakers on a retooled roster compared to the post-trade deadline team that competed last playoffs. He averaged 28.2 points, 7.5 assists, and 8.1 rebounds in 28 games as a Laker, and given that the adjustment phase is done, Marjanovic said it's fair to think that the sky's the limit for the former Maverick this coming season.
"I know his mental strength and how he works and how he basically plays for his national team and every summer, even if he's tired, he'll have a full season in the NBA, he's still right now in the national team and playing for his country. What makes him like yes, you know, you're never tired, you work hard and everything he does, he works because of basketball," said Boban.
For Doncic to win MVP
Being in the best shape of his career won't be enough for Doncic to win the MVP award, but it's certainly a great start. For the international superstar to win the aforementioned award, he must lead the Lakers to at least a top seed in the competitive Western Conference. He must lead his team in most statistical categories, and while competing with his competitors, which won't be an easy task. That's why this is where Doncic's work this summer will have to pay off, which Marjanovic thinks will happen.
"I know how much effort he worked this summer and how he worked like all these years that we know each other and I have full respect for him," added Boban.
With two months to go until the regular season, there's certainly a ton of hype around Doncic's transformative summer.. Whether it'll be a pivotal difference remains up in the air, but suffice it to say that the expectations are once again going to be monumental for the incoming eight-year guard. Anything less than an MVP or a championship would be a disappointment.This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 13, 2025, where it first appeared.
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