Luka Doncic boldly declares Real Madrid's dominance in Champions League ‘with or without Mbappe’
Luka Doncic played for Real Madrid from 2015-18, leading it to a EuroLeague title in 2018 before moving to the NBA. Even though Doncic is stateside, he still has ties to his old club. Further, he supports the world-famous football (soccer) team Real Madrid.
Doncic has spoken about his fandom publicly. He is a massive Real Madrid fan. He was also named an honorary member of the club in 2021. It is the highest honor given by the club.
His team has been in the news recently as the favorite to land French superstar Kylian Mbappe this summer. The PSG striker has announced that this season will be his last with the Paris club. Doncic believes in the franchise even if it fails to land the best young player.
“With or without Mbappe, we can win many Champions Leagues,” Doncic said.
Real Madrid has won 14 European Cup/Champions League titles in its storied history. The team is alive for another title this season. It holds a 1-0 aggregate lead in the round 16 match with RB Leipzig.
Real Madrid has plenty of star power without Mbappe. The team is led by formidable fronts Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo and Jude Bellingham. If Real Madrid adds Mbappe, it could become unstoppable.
Luka Doncic’s career at Real Madrid
Before becoming an NBA All-Star, Luka Doncic was a teenager dominating the top tier of European basketball. The Slovenian played with Real Madrid from 2015-18.
In his three full seasons with Real Madrid, Doncic led the team to a EuroLeague title in 2018. He won the league MVP that year as well. He led the league with a 21.5 performance index rating, averaging 16.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game that season.
In his second season, he led Madrid to a EuroLeague Final Four. He was named EuroLeague Rising Star that season.
He also led the club to two domestic titles in his three seasons in Madrid. He scored 12.5 ppg in domestic games in his final season in Real Madrid.
Doncic was the youngest player to ever play with Real Madrid. He made his professional debut at 16 years old in April 2015. He was the third youngest player in league history behind Ricky Rubio and Angel Rebolo.
Doncic was named to the EuroLeague All-Decade (2010-20) Team. The award was given in March 2020. He returned to Madrid for a pre-season friendly this summer. He took his Dallas Mavericks to Madrid for an exhibition against the Real basketball team. Real Madrid pulled off the upset 127-123.
Doncic has plenty of European ties. He plays for Slovenia in international events. Still, he remains close to his Madrid ties and supports the club in all sports.