Nikola Jokic is a name that is well-known to basketball fans around the world. He is considered one of the best players in the NBA, and his rise to stardom is nothing short of remarkable.
- Nikola Jokic: The Beginning
- Jokic Enters The NBA And Becomes An Unlikely Star
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Jokic’s journey began in Serbia, where he grew up playing basketball with his brothers. Despite not being recruited by any major college teams in the United States, Jokic was eventually discovered by the Denver Nuggets and quickly became a key player on their roster.
Today, he is a 5x All-Star, 2x MVP, and now an NBA Champion. But Jokic’s success is not just due to his impressive basketball IQ; it is also a testament to his hard work, dedication, and passion for the game.
In this article, we will take a closer look at Jokic’s incredible journey from a Serbian kid to an NBA superstar and explore what makes him such a dominant force on the court. This is the biography of “The Joker,” Nikola Jokic.
Nikola Jokic: The Beginning
Nikola Jokic, the Serbian-born basketball player, has taken the NBA by storm with his impressive skills and humble demeanor. From a young age, Jokic showed a natural affinity for the game, playing on the streets of Sombor, Serbia, with his older brothers.
Despite not having access to top-level coaching or facilities, Jokic’s passion for basketball never waned. He spent his teenage years playing for local teams in Serbia, honing his craft and developing his unique style of play.
On top of playing basketball, Jokic also has a love of horse racing and even competed as an amateur in his early life. This is a passion he still holds today, as he often races horses in the NBA offseason.
Jokic played in the Adriatic League, also known as the ABA League in Europe, and this is where his skills started to blossom. The big man won an MVP and a rebounding title, proving he was a player for scouts to watch out for.
Jokic also was named as a 3x Serbian Player of the Year in 2018, 2021, and 2022. This is for his play on the Serbian National Team, as well as his play in the NBA (as long as you are a Serbian citizen, you are eligible for the award, no matter where you play in the world).
How Jokic was discovered is an interesting story. Famed basketball scout in Europe, Misko Raznatovic, found Jokic by simply reading about his stats in a newspaper.
This is what led to Jokic playing in the Adriatic League, as well as other leagues in Europe. Next, the Denver Nuggets would take notice of Jokic, the problem was Jokic would not be aware, at least not at first…
Jokic Enters The NBA And Becomes An Unlikely Star
The Denver Nuggets selected Nikola Jokic with the 41st pick in the 2014 NBA Draft. When Jokic’s name was called, two strange things were happening. First, the televised Nba Draft was on a commercial, a Taco Bell commercial, to be exact, when Jokic’s name was called.
And secondly, Jokic was fast asleep during this time. It wasn’t until his brother, Nemanja, called Jokic and woke him up to tell him the good news.
The Nuggets were quickly impressed with their selection and knew they had made the right choice by drafting the relatively unknown European player.
“The year after we drafted him we watched his first pro game,” Nuggets President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly said. “We were all watching it in a room and we were just like ‘wow, this guy is really good.’ He’s throwing no-look, bounce passes, he’s shooting threes, he’s operating in the post. We thought he was going to be a pretty good NBA player, but (after) the first glimmer, (we thought) he might be better than a pretty good NBA player. That was the first time we kind of saw glimmers of a guy that potentially could be a showpiece guy.”
As a rookie, Jokic didn’t wow many people outside of Denver. He averaged just 10.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. Even with these numbers not being jaw-dropping, Jokic did manage to earn a spot on the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
This would be the first of many honors Jokic would earn in his short NBA career. In his fourth NBA season, Jokic earned his first All-Star appearance, and he earned a spot on the All-NBA First Team.
The 2020–21 NBA season would be Jokic’s true breakout season. He won the MVP award by averaging 26.4 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 8.3 assists per game, which is unheard of by a center.
Jokic made history as he joined Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook as the only players in NBA history to average more than 26 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists for an entire season. He also became the first player to do so while shooting better than 52%, as he shot 56.6% from the field.
Fans started to pay attention to Jokic, and he even earned a cool nickname, which is “The Joker,” thanks to his last name sounding similar. The very next season, The Joker won another MVP award by averaging 27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds, and 7.9 assists per game.
In his second MVP season, Jokic made more history by having the highest regular season player efficiency rating in NBA history at 32.85. There seemed to be nothing Jokic couldn’t do… Well, there was one thing.
Fans and analysts alike both talked about how Jokic underperformed in the playoffs or how he couldn’t lead his team to an NBA championship. In his two MVP seasons, the Nuggets were knocked out in the Semifinals and the First Round.
The farthest the Nuggets had gone with Jokic was to the Western Conference Finals in the 2020 Bubble playoffs. There they lost 4-1 to the Los Angeles Lakers, and Jokic struggled at times in the series, despite averaging 21.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game.
The 2022-23 season was Jokic’s time to show how much he has matured as a player. For most of the season, he was on pace to become the first center in NBA history to average a triple-double. He fell just short of that by averaging 24.5 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 9.8 assists per game.
Jokic was also the front-runner for his third straight MVP award but ended up losing out to Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers. The Joker led the Nuggets to the best record in the Western Conference at 53-29 and the home-court advantage throughout the playoffs in the West.
In the playoffs, Jokic has just gotten better. He set numerous records like the most triple-doubles in a playoff run with 10, he joined Jason Kidd as the only players in league history to record a triple-double in their Finals debut, and he recorded the first 30+ points, 20+ rebounds, and 10+ assists in a game in the NBA Finals.
Jokic’s magical run ended with 28 points, 16 rebounds, and 4 assists and his first-ever NBA title. The Joker won the Finals MVP award, after averaging 30.2 points, 14.0 rebounds, and 7.2 assists per game in the series. This trophy fits nicely alongside the NBA Conference Finals Most Valuable Player Award he won in the previous round.
On top of his incredible NBA career, Jokic has had a stellar career for the Serbian National Team. He was named tournament MVP in the 2016 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament and won the silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Nikola Jokic has a lot left to give in his career, as he’s only 28 years old and has only played eight seasons in the NBA. It’s been a great ride so far, and as fans, we’re all excited to see how great of a career The Joker will have.
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