Nikola Jokic Went Up To Shake Hands With Every Heat Player Before Celebrating His Title Win

Before celebrating winning the 2023 NBA championships, Nikola Jokic went over to shake hands with the Miami Heat players.

Jun 13, 2023

3 Min Read

Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

Considering all the criticism that had come his way over the last year or so for not winning a championship, Nikola Jokic could have been forgiven for being caught up in the moment after winning it all.

Instead, while his teammates celebrated the first title in Denver Nuggets history after the buzzer, Jokic headed over to shake hands with every Miami Heat player.

Jokic went up to every Heat player before celebrating winning the #NBAFinals

Sportsmanship at its finest 👏 pic.twitter.com/L4xLqQT6HR

— ESPN (@espn) June 13, 2023

Jokic certainly is a special individual and is easily one of the more likable superstars in the NBA today. No one would have blamed him if he just went crazy with his celebrations after the buzzer, as most players would have, but that’s just not who he is.

He always shows a great deal of respect to his opponents and the Heat certainly deserve a lot of it. They did a terrific job to even get this far and, in the end, just lost out to a team that was flat-out better than them. There is no shame in that and hopefully, they can find a way to come back stronger next season.

Nikola Jokic Came Up Big To Clinch The Title For The Nuggets

With the Nuggets on the brink of history and the Heat facing elimination, it was clear there was a fair bit of pressure on both sets of players. Nine of the 10 starters failed to even shoot 50.0% from the field in Game 5 and then there was Jokic, who scored 28 points while going 12-16 from the field. He also had 16 rebounds, 4 assists, and a block to cap off a postseason run for the ages.

He ended the Finals with averages of 30.2 PPG, 14.0 RPG, 7.2 APG, 0.8 SPG, and 1.4 BPG and deservingly won Finals MVP. It was a clean sweep, too as he got all 11 votes, as he should have.

Teammate Michael Porter Jr. had some high praise for the Serb after it, as he believes Jokic is now the best big man ever. He has put himself in that conversation with his exploits in these playoffs. But he does need to win more in order to get to the very top.

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TAGGED:Miami Heat Archive Nikola Jokic

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ByGautam Varier

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Gautam Varier is a staff writer and columnist for Fadeaway World from Mumbai, India. He graduated from Symbiosis International University with a Master of Business specializing in Sports Management in 2020. This educational achievement enables Gautam to apply sophisticated analytical techniques to his incisive coverage of basketball, blending business acumen with sports knowledge.Before joining Fadeaway World in 2022, Gautam honed his journalistic skills at Sportskeeda and SportsKPI, where he covered a range of sports topics with an emphasis on basketball. His passion for the sport was ignited after witnessing the high-octane offense of the Steve Nash-led Phoenix Suns. Among the Suns, Shawn Marion stood out to Gautam as an all-time underrated NBA player. Marion’s versatility as a defender and his rebounding prowess, despite being just 6’7”, impressed Gautam immensely. He admired Marion’s finishing ability at the rim and his shooting, despite an unconventional jump shot, believing that Marion’s skill set would have been even more appreciated in today’s NBA.This transformative experience not only deepened his love for basketball but also shaped his approach to sports writing, enabling him to connect with readers through vivid storytelling and insightful analysis.