Nikola Jokic revealed in a podcast that he has no plans to return to Europe. He discussed how his first NBA contract changed his life, shared his first purchase of a horse named Dream Catcher, and praised mentor Svetislav Pesic. Jokic also compared the NBA to European basketball and reflected on the famous Barcelona scouting game.
Nikola Jokic gave rare insight into his career, life, and philosophy in a two-hour Serbian-language interview on the X&O’s Chat podcast.
MIN:
34.56
PTS:
28.83 (65.42%)
REB:
12.5
AS:
10.29
ST:
1.33
BL:
0.77
TO:
3.75
GM:
48
The superstar spoke openly about Europe, the NBA, coaches, and even his first purchase after signing a professional contract.
When asked if he would ever return to Europe, Jokic did not hesitate, making it clear that his future is firmly in the NBA.
“No. Nothing against EuroLeague or Europe, but I would not do it,” he said.
Jokic also opened up about how his life changed after signing his first NBA contract and revealed what his very first purchase was.
“My life changed with my first contract,” he explained. “The first thing I bought was a horse, Dream Catcher.”
On coaching, Jokic spoke about the deep respect he has for one of his early mentors, Svetislav Pesic, highlighting how much he learned from the legendary coach.
“I respect Kari a lot. I learned many things from him. Some players may not like his style but I love his confidence in his system. People say coaches cannot yell at players anymore. That is nonsense. Kari yelled at us.”
Credit FIBA
Jokic did not shy away from comparing the NBA to European basketball, offering a candid assessment of the differences in talent, pace, and style of play.
“NBA is by far the best league in the world, with the best players,” he stated. “I am glad we talked about this because when people say there is no defense in the NBA that is nonsense. If someone watches and still says that, they do not understand basketball. Did Luka play in the EuroBasket and score 30 against everyone? Sometimes he scores even more there than in the NBA. Where are the people now saying the NBA is easier?”
Finally, Jokic revisited the famous scouting game against Cedevita Olimpija, when Barcelona reportedly lost interest in him.
“I did not sabotage it,” Jokic said. “But I did have moments later where I would not be aggressive. I would not shoot. Some days I just did not want to. I would just keep passing and Deki wanted to kill me. If I knew how the situation would develop later, maybe I would have sabotaged it.”
This season, Jokic is putting up MVP-level numbers, averaging 28.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 10.3 assists per game while shooting 57.4% from the field and 39.1% from three.
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