Luka Dončić’s Jordans Got A Custom Upgrade — And It's All About Being A New Dad
Just a day after welcoming his first daughter, Luka Dončić upgraded his Jordan Luka 2s — in the best possible way.
On Friday, December 1st, Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Dončić was listed as “out” against the Grizzlies for personal reasons. Just hours later, those personal reasons became ultra-clear after Dončić announced he had welcomed a newborn daughter with his long-time fiancée Anamaria Goltes, who they named Gabriela. They had not publicly announced that Anamaria was expecting — so the announcement of Gabriela’s birth came as quite a surprise to the rest of the world.
Dončić and Goltes announced the birth with a simple Instagram photo of him and Goltes holding their newborn daughter’s hands. When Dončić did return to the court the very next day, on Saturday, December 2nd, for a home game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, he did so with a brand-spanking new custom upgrade to his Jordan Luka 2s — an upgrade dedicated to baby Gabriela.
Dončić hit the court in a pair of white/tan Luka 2s with pink accents. Next to the pink Jumpman on the bottom of the shoe, Dončić — or someone else — handwrote his daughter’s name, Gabriela, in all caps, with a heart, in black ink. Man, those are clean shoes.
While the Mavericks didn’t take home the dub that night against OKC, Dončić and his team put on a veritable masterclass in scoring — Luka alone racked up 36 points, 18 assists, and 15 rebounds. He and the team also put on a 30-0 run in the second half of the game — an apparent franchise first, per CBSSports, but not enough to overcome OKC.
Perhaps new fatherhood is fueling Luka. In a post-game interview, Dončić put the arrival of daughter Gabriela short and sweet: “First of all, it was the happiest day of my life.” He added: “I got the baby, but then today's game was a big rollercoaster, too. I'm so sad we didn't win this game, but man, we gave a big, big effort." Is Luka already leading by example for his newborn daughter on how to graciously accept loss and have a winner’s attitude? (He’ll also have to teach her the art of court trash-talk, too.)
As for the Jordan Luka 2s — while the colorway Dončić donned for Saturday night’s game doesn’t yet appear to be on sale, other colorways are, including “Trick Shot,” a white, light blue, and green sneaker, and “The Pitch,” a multi-colored sneaker that’s an assault on the senses (and the court. In a good way.)
Congratulations to Luka and Anamaria!
