Luka Doncic is far from the only tall European sports star around.
Retired tennis great Maria Sharapova was in attendance at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, Calif. for Saturday’s game between Doncic’s Los Angeles Lakers and the Denver Nuggets. The Lakers won in overtime by a final score of 127-125 after Doncic hit a game-winning baseline jumper with 0.5 seconds left to finish with a 30-point triple-double on the night.
After the game, Doncic took some time to meet with Sharapova. The two posed for a picture outside of the Lakers’ locker room.
Take a look at the photo, which was posted to the NBA’s official X page.
Tennis legend Maria Sharapova & Luka Dončić following the Lakers OT W! pic.twitter.com/9YRD5XeJLv
— NBA (@NBA) March 15, 2026
Fans were left stunned by the picture with many commenting about how minimal the height difference was between the two. Doncic, 27, stands 6-foot-8 while Sharapova, 38, was listed at 6-foot-2 during her playing career.
Perhaps Doncic being in slippers and Sharapova being in platform shoes helped create the height dynamic in that photo. But the former career Grand Slam winner and world No. 1 Sharapova, who retired from tennis in 2020, is still impressively tall and already went viral a few years ago for her photo with her ex-rival Serena Williams.
