Depending on how you look at it, you could make a case that Nikola Jokic has never suffered a truly devastating loss as a member of the Nuggets. The game seven defeat to the Blazers certainly comes to mind, but in some ways, it felt like the team was already playing with house money.
Losing last season to the Timberwolves in game seven could also be argued, but the team still had the grace of winning a title; it was hard to be too upset. In other years, the team has either overachieved (like in the bubble) or petered out in an anticlimactic fashion (like the years when Murray was injured).
For a team that has been very good for several years, the good times have been a lot better than the bad times. In that sense, it’s hard to be disappointed with Nikola about… well, just about anything. The man can do no wrong in the eyes of Nuggets fans, and he has earned that status ten times over.
Jokic considers loss to Team USA "biggest" of career
But a recent comment by Jokic may have irked at least a few fans as he was interviewed by B92 Sport while in Abu Dhabi and was asked about the loss to Team USA in the Olympics. Jokic lamented that that was “probably the biggest” loss of his career, reiterating later that for those who played it “must have been the toughest loss of our careers”.
This is a completely reasonable take and it’s clear to anyone who watches just how much pride Jokic takes in suiting up for his country. It’s apparent that he pours his heart into those games and feels almost a sense of responsibility to his homeland.
But it’s hard not to wonder if the Joker shares that same passion for NBA basketball and winning with the Nuggets. Sure, it’s a lot different, and winning an international championship for a country that is not the United States would be the pinnacle of the career for almost any foreign player.
Then again, Jokic isn’t any other foreign player; he’s one of the best basketball players to ever live and the peak of basketball on earth is the NBA. Winning NBA titles is the peak of achievement in the sport. Jokic has climbed that hill, and maybe his answer would have been different had he suffered a heartbreaking loss in the NBA Finals.
But that hasn’t happened, and until it does, Jokic seems more bothered and distraught about a loss with team Serbia than he does for those with the Nuggets. This isn’t a knock on Nikola in any way, it’s just interesting to think about and put things into perspective.