Jaxson Hayes Receives Slovenian Passport, Eligible to Join Luka Doncic on National Team
Jaxson Hayes and Luka Doncic may very well be the brand new duo on the worldwide stage after the Los Angeles Lakers heart shared some excellent news. Hayes needs to play in worldwide tournaments with a nationwide workforce. With the expertise that USA Basketball has, the previous Texas heart has a slim likelihood of being a part of Team USA.
Players that USA Basketball feels ought to be on the nationwide workforce are invited. The squad is commonly made up of high gamers, and few NBA function gamers are allowed to take part. Players can nonetheless play for different nationwide groups, nevertheless, to fulfill their desires of competing internationally.
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Jaxson Hayes Confirms Receiving His Slovenian Passport
Los Angeles Lakers heart Jaxson Hayes (11) Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
After the workforce observe on Monday, Hayes confirmed with reporters that he obtained his Slovenian passport. This makes him eligible to play for the Slovenian males’s nationwide basketball workforce, along with Doncic.
“We got my Slovenian passport,” Hayes stated. “It really came through. Luka’s been calling me ‘my Slovenian brother.’ “He says it all the time.”
Hayes, Doncic and their agent, Bill Duffy, have been pursuing a Slovenian passport for the Lakers big man since October 2025. According to the backup center, part of the reason why he wanted to play for a different country was because of the “invite-only” process of USA Basketball.
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“USA would not do open tryouts,” Hayes said in October. “And I really feel like there are guys they invite to the USA [training camp] that should not be there. So, I needed to simply play on that stage… I’m going to do no matter it takes to play on that stage.”
Slovenia permits one naturalized participant in its roster, and Hayes might fill that function. The European workforce might have the Ohio native as their beginning heart within the 2028 LA Olympics. Additionally, he is already developed a fantastic on-court chemistry with Doncic.
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The only problem for Hayes now is how he will communicate with the other players on the roster. He admitted that he doesn’t know a single Slovenian word that would help him build chemistry. The ones that I have learned from Doncic are all curse words.
Back in October, head coach JJ Redick spoke about his support for Hayes securing a spot on the Slovenian roster.
“The worldwide recreation may be very completely different. And I believe for him, if it finally ends up taking place, getting that connection and chemistry with Luka can be superior.”
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It hasn’t been confirmed if Hayes will probably be a part of the nationwide workforce sooner or later. However, receiving his Slovenian passport is one step nearer to it.
Related: Lakers’ JJ Redick Shares Jaxson Hayes Injury Update Before Magic Game
This story was initially printed by Athlon Sports on Apr 21, 2026, the place it first appeared within the NBA part. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
