To a hyper-competitive American audience, Nikola Jokić appearing not to prioritize his status as the best basketball player in the world can be jarring at worst and amusing at best. We don’t often see professional athletes like the Denver Nuggets superstar center, who, despite his dominance, isn’t necessarily placing his basketball greatness on a pedestal the way you might expect. Just like Scottie Scheffler and golf, Jokić has a much healthier relationship with the athletic talent that made him world famous.
As Jokić tries to lead his native Serbia to its first men’s EuroBasket title in nearly a quarter-century, this dynamic seems to be refreshing to some of his peers. Namely, Germany’s (and the Sacramento Kings’) Dennis Schröder.
Before Germany took on Serbia in a EuroBasket exhibition on Saturday, Schröder beamed with respect for Jokić. He marveled at how “the best player in the world” wants to be remembered for being a father first, and everything else second. Perhaps that’s what makes Jokić so special in the first place:
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“I find it fascinating that basketball really only comes second or third in his [Jokić’s] life,” Schroder said. He enjoys spending time with his family and his horses. He lives for the things that matter to him. He says he doesn’t want to be remembered in the books for basketball, but for how good he is as a father. But as a player, he’s the best in the world.”
It doesn’t get any more real than that.
While we sometimes laugh about how Jokić does (or doesn’t) seemingly care about his job, it’s worth remembering that those are only appearances from the surface. And even if basketball might be a secondary or tertiary focus to him, we should probably commend him for having his priorities in order, even with all of his fame and success. Above all, Jokić seems to have a really good head on his shoulders.
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