For many basketball gamers, successful an NBA title is the final word objective. Within the case of three-time MVP Nikola Jokić, it’d simply be the winner’s circle on the race observe.
Jokić’s ardour for horse racing is well-documented, and we noticed one other show of it on Sunday. Again in his residence nation of Serbia, Jokić was readily available to see certainly one of his horses win and he instantly was overcome with emotion.
Jokić is thought to have a steely on-court demeanor, however racing horses reveals a special facet of the Denver Nuggets famous person and three-time MVP. Jokić wiped tears from his eyes as he hopped onto the observe to have fun with the jockey and his horse.
Whereas basketball could also be what pays the payments (and fills the trophy case) for Jokić, it is clear that horse racing holds a particular place in his coronary heart. After the Nuggets gained the NBA championship in 2023, Jokić’s father, Branislav, told the Associated Press that he needed to persuade Nikola to pursue basketball over horse racing.
“And I used to inform him: ‘Son, turn into a basketball participant first, and you may turn into a terrific horseman later,'” Branislav Jokić stated.
Over time, Jokić has blended his two passions in some type or one other. Again in 2023, Jokić brought Nuggets teammate Aaron Gordon to Serbia to observe some races in his hometown of Sombor.
Later that very same yr, whereas the Nuggets had been on a street journey in New York, Jokić took the opportunity to visit the Yonkers Raceway and meet a couple of of the horses.