Brian Windhorst reveals possible timeline for Luka Doncic extension

USA Today

16-07-2025

On Aug. 2, Luka Doncic will be eligible to sign a contract extension with the Los Angeles Lakers. As it stands right now, he has two seasons left on his current contract, and he can opt out of it next summer.
He will become eligible for an extension of up to $228 million over four years, however, it is thought that he may opt to sign a shorter extension so that he could then ink a supermax deal in 2028. There is no indication that Doncic is thinking of leaving the team — if anything, he has dropped at least one hint that he would like to stay put for a while.
He has been preparing to represent his native Slovenia in the upcoming FIBA Eurobasket tournament, which will take place later this summer. Brian Windhorst of ESPN reminded people that because of that commitment, Doncic will likely not take care of his contract situation until very late in the summer.
"He's playing for the Slovenian national team at the European Championships, frequently called Eurobasket, which is the most, one of the most valuable tournament for the Europeans outside the Olympics," Windhorst said. "And he won the Eurobasket for Slovenia earlier in his career, probably the greatest moment of his career. They play six exhibition games leading up to the start on Aug. 27th and that it could they could go as late as Sept. 14th, which means he may not be back into the U.S. if the Slovenians get all the way to the end until late September. And you know, [Tim] McMahon will tell you that in the past when he's been playing for the national team, he has not done NBA business, including NBA contracts. So, he could certainly pledge his intention to sign with the Lakers. But do not freak out if you do not hear from Luka contractually until September."
McMahon added something that may make Lakers fans a little nervous.
"This will be an indication of what kind of faith that Luka Doncic has in that Lakers front office," he said. "It's not about when it's signed — if he wants to wait until after Eurobasket, that's fine. But if it's not signed heading into the season, that will loom like a black cloud over the Lakers this season."
Doncic is just 26 years of age, so there is the potential for him to be the Lakers' next generational player for roughly a decade. But although the Lakers may have improved a bit so far this offseason, they aren't a championship-caliber team yet.
It remains to be seen how much faith he has in the team's front office to help him win his first NBA title, as McMahon alluded to.