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Nikola Jokić

Jokić with the Denver Nuggets in 2020
No. 15 – Denver Nuggets
Position	Center
League	NBA
Personal information
Born	(1995-02-19) February 19, 1995 (age 29) Sombor, Serbia, FR Yugoslavia
Nationality	Serbian
Listed height	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight	284 lb (129 kg)
Career information
NBA draft	2014: 2nd round, 41st overall pick
Selected by the Denver Nuggets
Playing career	2012–present
Career history
2012–2015	Mega Basket
2015–present	Denver Nuggets
Career highlights and awards
NBA Most Valuable Player (2021) 3× NBA All-Star (2019–2021) All-NBA First Team (2019) All-NBA Second Team (2020) NBA All-Rookie First Team (2016) Serbian Player of the Year (2018) ABA League MVP (2015) ABA League Top Prospect (2015)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference
Medals Men's basketball Representing  Serbia Olympic Games 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team U19 World Championship 2013 Czech Republic Team

Nikola Jokić (Serbian Cyrillic: Никола Јокић, pronounced [nǐkola jôkitɕ]; born February 19, 1995) is a Serbian professional basketball player for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association (NBA) who plays the center position. He is a three-time NBA All-Star who has been named to the All-NBA Team twice (including a first-team selection) and has won the NBA Most Valuable Player Award for the 2020–21 NBA season. He also represents the Serbian national team.

Nicknamed "the Joker", Jokić was selected by the Nuggets in the second round of the 2014 NBA draft. He was voted to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 2016. In the 2018–19 NBA season, while leading the Nuggets to the Western Conference Semifinals, he received his first All-Star and All-NBA First Team selections. In the following season, he once again received All-Star and All-NBA honors, while leading his team to the Western Conference Finals. Jokić ranks among the top 10 on the all-time list of the NBA players with the most triple-doubles, where he is the leading European player, and he holds the record for fastest triple-double (achieved in 14 minutes and 33 seconds). He also won an Olympic silver medal at the 2016 Rio Games.

Early life

Jokić was born in Sombor, Serbia. He grew up in a cramped two-bedroom apartment that housed him and his two brothers, both parents and grandmother. His father was an agricultural engineer. Jokić developed a love of basketball early in his life playing with his two older brothers, who were a decade older. Strahinja, the oldest brother, played basketball in Europe and Nemanja, the second oldest, played college basketball at the University of Detroit Mercy. The brothers are friends with former NBA player Darko Miličić. Jokić also loved horse racing as a child and competed as an amateur, a passion he still holds today.

Professional career

Mega Basket (2012–2015)

Jokić played youth basketball in Vojvodina Srbijagas, where he became a dominant figure and received interest from bigger teams. In the summer of 2012, Jokić signed a contract with Mega Vizura, although in the first season with the team he played mostly for their junior team in 2012–13. At the age of 17, he appeared in 5 games of the Serbian League and averaged 1.8 points and 2 rebounds in 10.2 minutes per game. In the 2013–14 season, he saw more minutes on the court for the senior team. Over 25 Adriatic League games, he averaged 11.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He also played 13 games with the team in the Serbian League and had similar production, averaging 10.9 points, 6 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.

2014–15 season

On June 26, 2014, Jokić was selected by the Denver Nuggets with the 41st overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft and following this and the departure of Ratko Varda, he became one of the team leaders in the 2014–15 season. In the first game of the Adriatic League, he led his team to a 103–98 win over MZT Skopje, by scoring 27 points and grabbing 15 rebounds for a total index rating of 44. He was named the MVP of Round 1. On November 3, he recorded 17 points, 12 rebounds and season-high 8 assists for a total index rating of 40, in a 90–84 victory over Zadar. For such performance, he was named the MVP of the Round 6. On February 7, he scored 27 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in a 77–88 loss to Szolnoki Olaj. He was named the MVP of the Round for the third time in a season. For his performances over the month, he was named the MVP for February, having averaged 21.7 points and 12.3 rebounds per game. On March 21, he scored a season-high 28 points and added 15 rebounds to help his team win with 100–96 over Igokea. He was named the MVP of the Round 26, his fourth Round MVP award over the season. Even though Mega Leks finished in 10th place in the Adriatic League, Jokić became one of the league's most valuable players. Over 24 games played, he averaged 15.4 points, league-leading 9.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game, while leading the league with the index rating of 22. On March 26, he was officially named the Adriatic League regular season MVP. He was also named the ABA League Top Prospect for the 2014–15 season.

After the elimination by Partizan Belgrade in the semifinals of the Serbian League, Jokić parted ways with the team to pursue an NBA career. In 14 games of the Serbian League, he averaged 18.4 points, 10.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game, while shooting 56.6% from the field.

Denver Nuggets (2015–present)

2015–16 season

In the summer of 2015, Jokić joined the Denver Nuggets, one season after being drafted. On July 28, 2015, he signed a contract with the Nuggets after averaging 8.0 points and 6.2 rebounds in five summer league games for the team. On November 18, 2015, he had a then season-best game with 23 points and 12 rebounds in a 109–98 loss to the San Antonio Spurs. On January 10, 2016, he recorded a career-high nine assists in a 95–92 win over the Charlotte Hornets. On February 1, he recorded career highs of 27 points and 14 rebounds in a 112–93 win over the Toronto Raptors. On April 8, he set a new career high with 15 rebounds in a 102–98 win over the San Antonio Spurs. At the season's end, he finished third in the 2016 NBA Rookie of the Year Award voting and earned NBA All-Rookie First Team honors.

2016–17 season

On October 29, 2016, Jokić recorded 23 points and a career-high 17 rebounds in a 115–113 overtime loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. After starting the first eight games of the season, Jokić was moved to the bench on November 12. He remained coming off the bench for the next 14 games. During that stretch as a bench player, he had a season-high 27 points and 11 rebounds in a 112–92 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on December 12. On December 19, he recorded a near triple-double with 27 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists in a 117–107 win over Dallas. He had another near triple-double on December 28, recording 16 points, a career-high 11 assists and eight rebounds in a 105–103 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. On January 16, 2017, he scored a career-high 30 points in a 125–112 win over the Orlando Magic. He surpassed that mark three days later, scoring 35 points in a 118–104 loss to the San Antonio Spurs. On February 3, 2017, he recorded his first career triple-double with 20 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists in a 121–117 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. On February 10, 2017, he scored a career-high 40 points to lead the Nuggets to a 131–123 victory over the New York Knicks. He went 17 of 23 from the field and added nine rebounds and five assists. Three days later, he set career highs with 12 assists and 21 rebounds to go with 17 points in his second career triple-double in a 132–110 win over the Golden State Warriors.

On February 28, 2017, he recorded his third career triple-double with 19 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists in a 125–107 win over the Chicago Bulls. The following night, he had his second straight triple-double and fourth of his career—all within 13 games. He finished with 13 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists in a 110–98 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. On March 16, 2017, he recorded his fifth triple-double of the season with 17 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists in a 129–114 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. On March 31, 2017, he recorded his sixth triple-double of the season with 26 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists in a 122–114 loss to the Charlotte Hornets. Jokić finished the season with a 29-point, 16-rebound, eight-assist effort in a 111–105 season-finale win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 12. His six triple-doubles ranked fourth on the season behind Russell Westbrook (42), James Harden (22) and LeBron James (13). At the season's end, he finished second in the 2017 NBA Most Improved Player Award voting as well as in the 2017 Assist of the Year voting.

2017–18 season

On November 7, 2017, Jokić scored a career-high 41 points in a 112–104 win over the Brooklyn Nets. On November 13, he was named Western Conference Player of the Week for games played from Monday November 6 to Sunday November 12. He became the 17th Nugget in franchise history to earn Player of the Week honors and the first since Ty Lawson in March 2013. Jokić had a seven-game absence with a left ankle sprain in early December. On January 8, he had his first triple-double of the season with 22 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists in a 124–114 loss to the Golden State Warriors. On February 15, in a 134–123 win over the Milwaukee Bucks, Jokić recorded 30 points, 15 rebounds and a career-high 17 assists, reaching a triple-double with 1:54 remaining in the second quarter. He recorded the quickest triple-double in NBA history in 14 minutes and 33 seconds, besting Jim Tucker's previous record of 17 minutes from 1955. On February 23, he recorded his third straight triple-double with 28 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in a 122–119 win over the San Antonio Spurs.

On March 7, he recorded 36 points and 13 rebounds in a 113–108 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. On March 15, he recorded his eighth triple-double of the season with 23 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in a 120–113 win over the Detroit Pistons, thus setting the most triple-doubles by a Nuggets player in a season since Fat Lever had nine in 1988–89. On April 1, he had 35 points and 13 rebounds in a 128–125 overtime win over the Bucks. On April 9, he was named Western Conference Player of the Week for games played from Monday April 2 to Sunday April 8, thus earning his second Player of the Week nod for the season. Later that day, he recorded 15 points, a season-best 20 rebounds and 11 assists in an 88–82 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, thus securing his 16th career triple-double and his 10th of the season. In the Nuggets' regular season finale on April 11, 2018, Jokić recorded 35 points and 10 rebounds in a 112–106 overtime loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. It was his seventh 30-point game of the season. The loss ruled the Nuggets out of the playoffs with a 46–36 record. It was the first final-day play-in game in the NBA in 21 years, with Minnesota also vying for a spot in the playoffs.

2018–19 season: Breakout season, first All-Star and All-NBA appearances

On July 9, 2018, Jokić signed a five-year, $148 million maximum contract extension with the Nuggets. On October 20, 2018, in the Nuggets' second game of the season, Jokić recorded 35 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists in a 119–91 win over the Phoenix Suns. He joined Wilt Chamberlain as the only players in NBA history to post a triple-double with 30 or more points without missing a field goal—Chamberlain did it twice, in 1966 and 1967. He also became just the second Nugget to record a triple-double in the first two games of the season, joining Fat Lever. Jokić went on to earn Western Conference Player of the Week honors for the first week of the season, becoming the sixth player in franchise history to win the award three or more times, joining Alex English, Dikembe Mutombo, Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson and Chauncey Billups. On November 3, he had a season-high 16 assists and 10 rebounds to go with seven points in a 103–88 win over the Utah Jazz. On November 9, he had a season-high 37 points and tied his career best with 21 rebounds in a 112–110 loss to the Brooklyn Nets. For his efforts in 2018, he was recognized as the Serbian Player of the Year by the Basketball Federation of Serbia.

On January 5, he scored a then season-high 39 points in a 123–110 win over the Charlotte Hornets. His second Player of the Week honor came for games played from December 31 to January 6. On January 8, he had his fourth triple-double of the season with 29 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in a 103–99 win over the Miami Heat. It was his 20th triple-double of NBA career. At age 23, he became the third-youngest player to reach 20 triple-doubles; Oscar Robertson and Magic Johnson were both 22 at the time of their 20th. Two days later, he had 18 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists in a 121–100 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. On January 13, he scored a season-high 40 points in 116–113 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. On January 19, he had his sixth triple-double of the season with 19 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds in a 124–102 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. It was his 22nd career triple-double, thus passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to move to second place on the NBA all-time triple-doubles list by a 7-footer. On January 23, he recorded 28 points and 21 rebounds in a 114–108 loss to the Jazz. On January 27, after serving a one-game suspension for leaving the bench during an on-court fracas against the Jazz, Jokić recorded his seventh triple-double with 32 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists in a 126–110 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. On January 31, he received his first All-Star selection as a Western Conference reserve for the 2019 NBA All-Star Game, becoming the Nuggets' first All-Star since Carmelo Anthony in 2011. On February 6, he recorded his 10th triple-double of the season with 25 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists in a 135–130 loss to the Nets. On February 13, he recorded his 12th triple-double of the season with 20 points, 18 rebounds and 11 assists, while also tipping in the game winning shot with 0.3 seconds remaining to lift the Nuggets to a 120–118 win over the Sacramento Kings. His twelve triple-doubles ranked second on the season behind only Russell Westbrook (34). On March 14, Jokic hit a rainbow hook-shot at the buzzer against the Dallas Mavericks to award Denver a 100-99 win.

In Game 1 of the Nuggets' first-round playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs, Jokić became the fourth player in NBA history to record a triple-double in his playoff debut and the first since LeBron James in 2006. He had 10 points, 14 rebounds and 14 assists in a 101–96 loss. In Game 6 of the series, he scored 27 of his 43 points in the second half of the Nuggets' 120–103 loss. He also had 12 rebounds and nine assists. Those 43 points set a franchise record for most points in a playoff game. In Game 7, he helped the Nuggets win the series 4–3 with 21 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists in a 90–86 victory. In Game 1 of the second round, Jokić scored 37 points in a 121–113 win over the Trail Blazers, becoming the first Nuggets player to score 35+ points in a conference semifinals game since Carmelo Anthony (41 points) in May 2009. In Game 3 against Portland, he had 33 points, 18 rebounds and 14 assists in a 140–137 quadruple-overtime loss. In Game 4, he had 21 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists in a 116–112 win. In Game 5, he recorded 25 points and 19 rebounds in a 124–98 win. His 19 rebounds tied a team NBA playoff high. The Nuggets were eliminated from the playoffs following a 100–96 loss to Portland in Game 7, despite Jokić's 29 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks. In 14 playoff games, he averaged 25.1 points, 13.0 rebounds and 8.4 assists in 39.7 minutes per game, with shooting splits of 50.6%/39.3%/84.6%. Following the season, he was named to the All-NBA First Team, earning selection to his first All-NBA team.

2019–20 season: continued success and NBA Bubble comebacks

On November 8, 2019, Jokić made a game-winning jumper against the Philadelphia 76ers with 1.2 seconds remaining, to give the Nuggets a 98–97 victory, rallying from a 21-point deficit. In the very next game, he hit yet another game-winning jumper, just two days later, in a 100–98 overtime win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. On January 6, 2020, Jokić scored a career-high 47 points against Atlanta Hawks in a 123–115 away win. On February 4, he recorded 30 points, 21 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 98–95 win over the Utah Jazz; it was the first 30/20/10 game by any NBA player in four years, and only the third since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1976. On January 30, Jokić was selected to his second consecutive All-Star nod, becoming the first Nugget since Carmelo Anthony in 2011 to have back-to-back honors.

In the first round playoff series against the Utah Jazz, Jokić closed the series with a hook shot to break the 78–78 score into 80–78 with 27 seconds remaining in the game, winning the game for the Nuggets. He finished the game with 30 points, 14 rebounds and 4 assists. On September 13, Jokić recorderd 34 points, 14 rebounds and 7 assists to lead Denver to a 111–98 Game 6 victory overcoming 19-point 2nd-half deficit. On September 15, Jokić recorded a triple double with 16 points, 22 rebounds and 13 assists to lead Denver to a 104–89 Game 7 victory over the heavily favored Los Angeles Clippers. Jokić joined Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett as the only players in league history to post a 20-rebound triple-double in the postseason. With the win, the Nuggets became the first team in NBA history to comeback from multiple 3–1 deficits in a single postseason. However, the Nuggets would go on to lose the Western Conference Finals in five games to the eventual NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers, with Jokić recording 22 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists in the lone Denver victory in Game 3.

2020–21 season: MVP season

Jokić started off the season with 4 triple-doubles in his first 6 games, in one of which he recorded a career-high 18 assists, on December 29, 2020, against the Houston Rockets in a 124–111 win. Doing so, Jokić became the first center to record at least 18 assists in a game since Wilt Chamberlain in 1968. On December 30, Jokić passed Fat Lever for most triple-doubles in Nuggets' franchise history in a 125–115 loss to the Sacramento Kings, which also saw him move up to 9th of all-time in career triple-doubles. Jokić would continue his stellar play throughout the month of January, being awarded with back to back Western Conference Player of the Week awards, as well as being named the Western Conference Player of the Month, thus becoming the first Nuggets player to do so since Carmelo Anthony.

On February 6, Jokić scored a career-high 50 points, grabbed 8 rebounds, dished out 12 assists along with 3 blocks in a 119–114 loss to the Sacramento Kings. He set a franchise record for being the first Nuggets player with at least 50 points and 10 assists while also becoming the first center to do so since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on January 19, 1975. He also joined Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson as the only Nuggets players with more than 50 points scored in the past 20 seasons. In addition, Jokić opened the season with 20 consecutive double-double games, putting him only behind Bill Walton (34 in 1976–77) since the American Basketball Association merged with the NBA in 1976. Later that same month, Jokić was selected for his third consecutive All-Star appearance, this time as a starter, becoming the first Nuggets player to start in the All-Star game since Carmelo Anthony in 2011, as well as joining Alex English and David Thomspon as the only Nuggets players to be selected to three straight NBA All-Star games. On March 2, Jokić recorded his 50th career triple-double, with a stat-line of 37 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, in a 128–97 blow-out win on the road against the Milwaukee Bucks. He became only the ninth player in NBA history to record 50 career triple-doubles, as well as only the second center to do so behind Wilt Chamberlain. Jokić also became the third fastest player to reach 50 career triple-doubles, with only Oscar Robertson and Magic Johnson doing it faster than him.

On March 17, in a 129–104 win over the Charlotte Hornets, Jokić surpassed Dikembe Mutombo for most double-doubles in Nuggets' franchise history. He would go on to be named Western Conference Player of the Month, for the second time, for games played in March. Doing so, he became the only Nuggets' player in franchise history to win the award twice in a single season. On April 4, Jokić had 16 assists in a 119–109 win over the Orlando Magic. As a result, he marked his 81st career 10-assist game, passing Wilt Chamberlain for the most double-digit assist games by a center in NBA history.

Despite an injury-laden regular season, Jokić led the Nuggets to a third seed in the Western Conference, boasting a record of 47–25. While playing and starting in every single game, he led the league in all the major advanced metrics intended to measure a player's value, such as player efficiency rating (PER), win shares, offensive win shares, box plus-minus, and value over replacement player (VORP). Jokić also finished as the league leader in double-doubles, racking up 60 double-doubles on the year, while finishing second to Russell Westbrook for most triple-doubles on the season, with 16 triple-doubles of his own. He joined Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook as the only players in NBA history to average 26+ points, 10+ rebounds and 8+ assists for an entire season, and officially became the first-ever player to do so on better than 52 percent shooting (making 56.6 percent of his field goal attempts). As well, Jokić became just the third player in NBA history to finish a season ranked in the top five in total points (3rd), rebounds (5th), and assists (3rd), joining Elgin Baylor and Wilt Chamberlain (3x).

In Game 1, of the first round of the playoffs, Jokić put up 34 points and 16 rebounds in a 123–109 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. The following game, Jokić scored 38 points on 15-of-20 shooting, while adding 8 rebounds and 5 assists, in a 128–109 win to tie the series up at 1-1. In Game 3, Jokić had another dominant outing, with 36 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists and a game-sealing tip-in, to lead the Nuggets to a 120–115 win, and a 2-1 series lead. Subsequently, Jokić became the fourth player in Nuggets' franchise history to score at least 30 points in the team's first three playoff games. He also became the first player since Michael Jordan to record 30 points on 50% shooting in each of his team's first three playoff games. In Game 5, Jokić propelled the Nuggets to a 3-2 series lead, and a 147–140 double-overtime win, stuffing the stat-sheet with 38 points, 11 rebounds, 9 assists and 4 blocks. In Game 6, Jokić scored 27 of his 36 points in the second half to lead the Nuggets to a 126–115 series-clinching win.

For his regular season performance, Jokić won the NBA Most Valuable Player Award; in doing so, he became the first center to win the award since Shaquille O'Neal in 2000 as well as the first player in Denver Nuggets franchise history. He also became the first Serbian player, third European player overall, and sixth international player to ever win the award. Having been selected 41st overall in the 2014 NBA draft, Jokić became the lowest-drafted player in NBA history to be named MVP; he also became the first-ever player to be drafted in the second round of the common draft era (since 1966) to win the award. In addition, Jokić and Vasilije Micić became the first-ever pair of players from the same country to be awarded both NBA MVP and EuroLeague MVP honors in the same season.

National team career

Jokić was a member of the Serbian U-19 national basketball team that won the silver medal at the 2013 FIBA Under-19 World Championship. Over eight tournament games, he averaged 7.1 points, 5 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. He represented Serbia at the 2016 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade, where he earned tournament MVP honors while averaging 17.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.

At the 2016 Summer Olympics, Serbia won the silver medal, after losing to the United States in the final game 96–66.

On May 24, 2019, Jokić announced he would play for Serbia at the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup. At the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup, the national team of Serbia was dubbed as favorite to win the trophy, but was eventually upset in the quarterfinals by Argentina. With wins over the United States and Czech Republic, it finished in fifth place. Jokić was the second-best player on the team behind Bogdan Bogdanović, averaging 11.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists over eight games, while shooting 68.0% from the field.

Player profile

Standing 6 feet 11 inches (2.11 m) and weighing 284 pounds (129 kg), Jokić plays exclusively at the center position. Through the 2020–21 season, Jokić's career averages are 18.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.7 blocks per game.

Jokić is considered by many to be the greatest passing big man in NBA history. As a playmaker, Jokić uses his size and vision to set up his teammates for scores, often through a variety of no looks and unique deliveries. His techniques, in particular his one-handed passes, have drawn comparisons to those of a water polo player. Playing at a slow and deliberate pace, Jokić often pauses upon receiving the ball to survey the floor for defensive mistakes and potential openings.

In addition to his playmaking ability, Jokić is also a deft post scorer and paint finisher, and is able to shoot effectively from long range. Jokić also has his own patented signature move, the "Sombor Shuffle", coined by the Nuggets play-by-play announcer Chris Marlowe, after Jokić's hometown of Sombor. It's a one-dribble move, that ends up with Jokić jumping off of his right leg, and launching a high arching shot. Jokić came up with the move during his recovery from an ankle sprain in 2017. Due to the separation the move creates, and Jokić's high release point, the opposing players find difficulty in defending it, to the point of even garnering frustration from the former Defensive Player of the Year Award winner Draymond Green. The move also drew comparisons to Dirk Nowitzki's iconic one-legged fadeaway.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Player profile

Standing 6 feet 11 inches (2.11 m) and weighing 284 pounds (129 kg), Jokić plays exclusively at the center position. Through the 2020–21 season, Jokić's career averages are 18.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.7 blocks per game.

Jokić is considered by many to be the greatest passing big man in NBA history. He uses a variety of no looks and unique deliveries to set up his teammates for scores. Jokić is also regarded as arguably the best offensive center in the NBA despite his lack of ideal athleticism. He demonstrates great passing ability, post scoring, paint finishing, and an effective outside shot. Jokić also has his own patented signature move, the "Sombor Shuffle", coined by the Nuggets play-by-play announcer Chris Marlowe, after Jokić's hometown of Sombor. It's a one-dribble move, that ends up with Jokić jumping off of his right leg, and launching a high arching shot. Jokić came up with the move during his recovery from an ankle sprain in 2017. Due to the separation the move creates, and Jokić's high release point, the opposing players find difficulty in defending it, to the point of even garnering frustration from the former Defensive Player of the Year Award winner Draymond Green. The move also drew comparisons to Dirk Nowitzki's iconic one-legged fadeaway.

Personal life

During Jokić's early years in Denver, he lived in a shared apartment with his then girlfriend and his two older brothers, Nemanja and Strahinja. Jokić married his longtime girlfriend Natalija Mačešić on October 24, 2020 in his hometown of Sombor.

Jokić tested positive for the COVID-19 on June 23, 2020. He tested negative after two weeks in quarantine.

See also

• List of National Basketball Association career triple-double leaders
• List of European basketball players in the United States
• List of Serbian NBA players
• List of Olympic medalists in basketball
• List of foreign NBA players

Notes

1. Other European winners include Dirk Nowitzki (Germany) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece); other international winners were Hakeem Olajuwon (Nigeria), Tim Duncan (U.S. Virgin Islands) and Steve Nash (Canada).

References

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External links

• Career statistics from NBA.com and Basketball Reference
• Nikola Jokić at fiba.com

Links to related articles

v t e NBA Most Valuable Player 1956: Pettit 1957: Cousy 1958: Russell 1959: Pettit 1960: Chamberlain 1961: Russell 1962: Russell 1963: Russell 1964: Robertson 1965: Russell 1966: Chamberlain 1967: Chamberlain 1968: Chamberlain 1969: Unseld 1970: Reed 1971: Alcindor 1972: Abdul-Jabbar 1973: Cowens 1974: Abdul-Jabbar 1975: McAdoo 1976: Abdul-Jabbar 1977: Abdul-Jabbar 1978: Walton 1979: M. Malone 1980: Abdul-Jabbar 1981: Erving 1982: M. Malone 1983: M. Malone 1984: Bird 1985: Bird 1986: Bird 1987: Johnson 1988: Jordan 1989: Johnson 1990: Johnson 1991: Jordan 1992: Jordan 1993: Barkley 1994: Olajuwon 1995: Robinson 1996: Jordan 1997: K. Malone 1998: Jordan 1999: K. Malone 2000: O'Neal 2001: Iverson 2002: Duncan 2003: Duncan 2004: Garnett 2005: Nash 2006: Nash 2007: Nowitzki 2008: Bryant 2009: James 2010: James 2011: Rose 2012: James 2013: James 2014: Durant 2015: Curry 2016: Curry 2017: Westbrook 2018: Harden 2019: Antetokounmpo 2020: Antetokounmpo 2021: Jokić 2022: Jokić 2023: Embiid 2024: Jokić v t e 2014 NBA draft First round Andrew Wiggins Jabari Parker Joel Embiid Aaron Gordon Danté Exum Marcus Smart Julius Randle Nik Stauskas Noah Vonleh Elfrid Payton Doug McDermott Dario Šarić Zach LaVine T. J. Warren Adreian Payne Jusuf Nurkić James Young Tyler Ennis Gary Harris Bruno Caboclo Mitch McGary Jordan Adams Rodney Hood Shabazz Napier Clint Capela P. J. Hairston Bogdan Bogdanović C. J. Wilcox Josh Huestis Kyle Anderson Second round Damien Inglis K. J. McDaniels Joe Harris Cleanthony Early Jarnell Stokes Johnny O'Bryant III DeAndre Daniels Spencer Dinwiddie Jerami Grant Glenn Robinson III Nikola Jokić Nick Johnson Walter Tavares Markel Brown Dwight Powell Jordan Clarkson Russ Smith Lamar Patterson Cameron Bairstow Alec Brown Thanasis Antetokounmpo Vasilije Micić Alessandro Gentile Nemanja Dangubić Semaj Christon Devyn Marble Louis Labeyrie Jordan McRae Xavier Thames Cory Jefferson v t e Serbia men's basketball squad – 2016 Summer Olympics – Silver medal 4 Teodosić 5 Simonović 7 Bogdanović 9 Marković 10 Kalinić 11 Nedović 12 Birčević 13 Raduljica 14 Jokić 15 Štimac 24 Jović 25 Mačvan Coach: Đorđević v t e Serbian Basketball Player of the Year Men 2015: Nemanja Bjelica 2016: Miloš Teodosić 2017: Bogdan Bogdanović 2018: Nikola Jokić 2019: Bogdan Bogdanović 2020: Not awarded 2021: Nikola Jokić 2022: Nikola Jokić 2023: Bogdan Bogdanović 2024: Nikola Jokić Women 2015: Ana Dabović 2016: Sonja Petrović 2017: Jelena Milovanović 2018: Aleksandra Crvendakić 2019: Sonja Petrović 2020: Not awarded 2021: Sonja Vasić 2022: Tina Krajišnik 2023: Aleksandra Crvendakić 2024: Jovana Nogić v t e ABA League MVP Award 2002: Baždarić 2003: Weaks 2004: Milojević 2005: Milojević 2006: Milojević 2007: Gurović 2008: Dragićević 2009: Tomić 2010: Mason 2011: Žorić 2012: Simon 2013: Ćapin 2014: Šarić 2015: Jokić 2016: Bilan 2017: Janković 2018: Žorić 2019: Bitadze 2020: Not awarded 2021: Petrušev 2022: Kalinić 2023: Božić 2024: Božić v t e ABA League season rebounding leaders 2002: Grgurević 2003: And. Žižić 2004: Milojević 2005: Milojević 2006: McMillan 2007: Gečevski 2008: Golubović 2009: Tomić 2010: Mason 2011: Žorić 2012: Scott 2013: Savović 2014: Šarić 2015: Jokić 2016: Ant. Žižić 2017: Kaba 2018: Božić 2019: Božić 2020: No award 2021: Simonović 2022: Kamenjaš 2023: Božić 2024: Weathers v t e ABA League Top Prospect 2014: Šarić 2015: Jokić 2016: Žižić 2017: Bolden 2018: Musa 2019: Bitadze 2020: not awarded 2021: Petrušev 2022: Jović 2023: Đurišić 2024: Topić

• 1995 births
• Living people
• 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup players
• Basketball players at the 2016 Summer Olympics
• Centers (basketball)
• Denver Nuggets draft picks
• Denver Nuggets players
• KK Mega Basket players
• Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics
• National Basketball Association All-Stars
• National Basketball Association players from Serbia
• Olympic basketball players of Serbia
• Olympic medalists in basketball
• Olympic silver medalists for Serbia
• Serbia men's national basketball team players
• Serbian expatriate basketball people in the United States
• Serbian men's basketball players
• Sportspeople from Sombor