In front of 20,000 fans in Belgrade, Nikola Jokic headlined Serbia’s 90-87 exhibition victory against France. Post-game, the Nuggets star reflected on his NBA teammate Peyton Watson being traded to Cleveland, admitting the loss will hurt Denver while shifting his current focus to the national team.
Serbia and France played an exciting exhibition match in Belgrade, where the hosts won in front of 20.000 fans in Beogradska Arena 90-87.
Position
SG, SF
Age
23
Height
201 cm
Weight
91 kg
Birth place
United States of America
Nikola Jokic put on a show, flirting with a triple-double, with 20 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists in over 29 minutes of play.
After the match, the Serbian center noted that everyone is still rusty after the summer break and was full of praise for Victor Wembanyama.
Jokic opens up on Watson trade
Right after the game, Jokic was asked by BasketNews.rs to comment on the Peyton Watson departure.
Watson left the Denver Nuggets in a sign-and-trade deal where he was acquired by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Jokic claims that the Nuggets will miss Watson’s presence and says that he is happy for him:
“I’m glad for Peyton. He’s a good man, really has a good energy, very good for the locker room. We will miss him for sure, but I can’t be unhappy for him, he’s a great guy,” he said.
“That will definitely hurt us, but we will think about it when the time comes and the season starts there [in the USA]. I’m more focused on playing these games here [for Serbia] now,” Jokic concluded.
Watson leaves after breakout season
The financial reality helps explain why Denver ultimately allowed one of its most promising young players to leave despite his breakout 2025-26 campaign.
Watson averaged career highs of 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 54 games while shooting 41.1% from the three-point range.
The 23-year-old is now heading to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a sign-and-trade and will sign a four-year, $88 million contract – an average of exactly $22 million per season. Denver receives an unprotected 2031 first-round pick and a future second-rounder as part of the transaction.
For Denver, therefore, the issue was not simply whether Watson was worth $22 million annually. Because of the Nuggets’ expensive roster and escalating luxury-tax penalties, keeping him at that number would have carried a real cost several times larger than his actual salary.
Serbia vs. France highlights
Like what we are doing? Support us by becoming BN+ member.
If you like our content, please click here and add us as your preferred source. It helps us a lot, and we are committed to delivering you the very latest basketball news.