Nikola Jokic had a priceless moment after winning MVP

DENVER—The moment Nikola Jokic has found out that he has won all three of his NBA MVPs has been special. The first came in front of his teammates in a ballroom during the NBA Playoffs. His second came as he trotted in with his horse and Nuggets brass surprised him at his Serbian stables. The third on Wednesday came in a back room at Ball Arena surrounded by a few family members, key Nuggets staffers and Jamal Murray.

The award was forecasted by many and as expected Jokic’s reaction to the announcement of his honoring was not much more than an earnest shrug and half-hearted fist wave. It’s not the norm for a player being anointed one of the 10-best in basketball history, but Joker isn’t the average guy and that’s kind of the whole point.

In true Nikola fashion pic.twitter.com/4FOasruQrA

— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) May 9, 2024

The reaction that was special and worth watching was that of the people around Jokic and the star center’s reaction to those reactions. His wife Natalija Jokic, who is at many games but is very private narrated a video for the Nuggets social media team. The heart-warming video shares the details of the family’s love for their accomplished NBA husband, father, brother and son. Behind the scars and smile, there is a family believing in him. His brothers Strahinja and Nemanja Jokic, their wives and kids—Jokic’s nephews—all made a rare appearance on camera to congratulate Nikola. Natalija and Nikola’s daughter Ognjena Jokic, who is just a tyke, also appeared in the video to share her love for her father.

More than an MVP. pic.twitter.com/LtVjlNkK9b

— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) May 8, 2024

The video was special to see and something we know Jokic saw. The Nuggets posted a second video of Nikola next to his daughter watching the first video.

“This is nice,” he said, before kissing his daughter. “This is so cool, this is so nice.”

A priceless moment 🥹 pic.twitter.com/hmd1JkE8LD

— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) May 9, 2024

Just a few minutes later when he talked to the media, ever the funny guy, Jokic joked that he didn’t know why his family was even there.

“I didn’t invite them, they just showed up. I’m like who wants to drive 45 minutes here to get it,” he said. “It’s nice, it’s a special moment and I’ll probably remember it my whole life. It’s a legacy for after my career.”

Jokic when asked about his legacy now as a three-time MVP, deflected that back onto his family.

“Basketball doesn’t mean that much (now that I’m a father,) I like to do it, I like to play the game, everything else (that comes with it) uh,” Jokic said. “Being a father, I don’t play just for myself or my teammates now. When I’m older, I don’t want my family to look at my videos and say that I’m bad. Now I can talk a lot of trash when my kid and nephews grow up. I’m going to be a cool grandpa.”