Luka Šamanić (born 9 January 2000) is a Croatian professional basketball player for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
2014
He collected 29 points, 10 rebounds, 4 steals, and 3 blocks for Zagreb in a 22 November 2014 win over the junior team for Šanac Karlovac.
On 16 November, he recorded 43 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 steals for Zagreb to help defeat Samobor, 160–21.
2016
In 2016, at age 16, he moved to Barcelona, Spain, where he joined the FC Barcelona's reserve team in the Spanish second-tier league.
On 3 January 2016, Šamanić led his team to a championship win against Virtus Roma in a youth tournament in Italy, for which he earned most valuable player (MVP) honors.
He scored 32 points on 16 January, in a blowout 111–43 win over the Rudeš junior team.
Later in the month, Šamanić dominated versus the Cedevita junior team, notching 26 points, 10 rebounds, 4 steals, and 4 blocks.
He continued his success on 22 February, when he erupted for 39 points and 21 rebounds in a 160–50 win over the junior team for Sisak.
On 29 May, Šamanić was named MVP of the Croatian cadet championship after his double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds in a blowout of Cibona junior squad.
In June, he attended the Adidas EuroCamp, a three-day pre-National Basketball Association (NBA) draft camp for international prospects held in Treviso, Italy.
On 14 June 2016, Šamanić signed a 2-year amateur contract with Spanish club FC Barcelona, initially joining its junior ranks.
On 22 December, he won the Slam Dunk Contest at a youth tournament in Tenerife.
2017
Šamanić has represented Croatia multiple times in FIBA events, leading his team to a gold medal at the FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship Division B in 2017, while earning most valuable player honors.
Šamanić was born in Zagreb, Croatia.
His father, Marko Šamanić, played basketball professionally for 19 years, including in the EuroLeague, with Slovenian club Krka.
Due to his father's career, Šamanić lived in a number of countries in his early life.
When he was nine months old, he moved to Belgium, and he later stayed in Slovenia and Germany.
Šamanić grew up playing a variety of sports, including football, handball, tennis, and was also involved in breakdancing.
He did not start playing basketball, the last sport he attempted, until he was 11 years old.
He credits his football experience for improving his coordination as a basketball player.
Šamanić began his basketball career at the youth levels with local club Zagreb.
In January 2017, Šamanić played with Barcelona's junior team at the Ciutat de L'Hospitalet qualifiers for the 2016–17 Adidas Next Generation Tournament and was one year younger than most of his opponents at both events.
In his first game at the qualifiers, on 6 January, he recorded 11 points and 5 rebounds in a 79–56 win over the Olimpija junior team.
In the final tournament in May, Šamanić averaged 8.7 points, 6 rebounds, and 0.7 assists through 3 games, earning the Rising Star Trophy.
Later that month, he won the Slam Dunk Contest at the EuroLeague FanZone, a three-day entertainment event at the 2017 EuroLeague Final Four.
By August 2017, Šamanić was drawing attention from several NCAA Division I programs, including Florida, Gonzaga, Purdue, and Stanford.
In the 2017–18 season with Barcelona's junior team, he assumed a greater role after many of its top players left.
In the 2017–18 season, Šamanić competed for FC Barcelona Bàsquet B—the reserve team of FC Barcelona—in the LEB Oro, the second-tier Spanish league.
He debuted on 1 October 2017, in a 76–69 win over Força Lleida, playing only 4 minutes.
Šamanić stood out in his next game versus Cáceres, scoring 10 points in 20 minutes and performing a windmill dunk.
On 4 November 2017, he scored 11 points in 19 minutes against Araberri.
In his following appearance, Šamanić collected 10 points and 8 rebounds in a win over Peñas Huesca.
2018
In January 2018, Šamanić joined Barcelona at the Ciutat de L'Hospitalet qualifiers for the 2017–18 Adidas Next Generation Tournament.
He posted 27 points, 16 rebounds, and 3 blocks on 7 January, as his team lost to the Joventut Badalona junior team in the championship.
Still, Šamanić was named L'Hospitalet tournament MVP and earned All-Tournament Team honors after averaging 23.2 points, 14.8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2.8 blocks through 4 games.
He scored a season-high 17 points on 9 February 2018, leading his team past Palencia.
Through 22 games, Šamanić averaged 5.1 points, 2 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 12.7 minutes per game.
In February 2018, he took part in a Basketball Without Borders camp in Los Angeles, joining several other international NBA prospects.
2019
A power forward, he was drafted 19th overall by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2019 NBA draft.
A native of Zagreb, Šamanić started his youth career with the eponymous basketball club.
