It’s not every day that I can write a sports blog headlined “humble and selfless,” but when we’re talking about the Denver Nuggets and their clinching the NBA Championship last night, those are the right words…for the team and for their star Nikola Jokic (pronounced “YO-kich”).

Jokic is from Serbia and has been with the Nuggets since the 2015 season. Jokic is big, 7 feet tall, 300 pounds. Basketball is sometimes akin to football with bodies knocking around and big guys “muscling” their way in. But it can also be like ballet, and that’s the way the Nuggets prefer to play. Jokic VERY frequently achieves a “triple-double:” 10+ points, 10+ rebounds, and 10+ assists. It’s his assists that everyone marvels at. If you’re not familiar with his play, here is a 4-minute compilation of those assists, just in these NBA playoffs. Jokic is the big white guy, #15.

Jason Gay of the Wall Street Journal writes eloquently about Jokic’s game and how he handles himself, leading with Jokic’s response to the post-game interviewer’s obligatory question, “Well, how does it feel to win the championship?”

“It’s good, it’s good,” he said. “The job is done, and we can go home now.”

So it isn’t the climatic scene of “Gladiator.” So what? If you weren’t charmed by Jokic on the victory stage, holding his toddler and looking a little embarrassed by all the attention, sorry. 

His game is all the charisma he needs. Jokic is a team basketball marvel—a visionary big man with small-guy handling skills; a dominant post player who understands modern spacing and passes, Gretzky-like, as if he sees the action a second and a half before anyone else.

I love the comment from a reader of Jason Gay’s article:

The best part of Jokic is that he really, truly does not seek attention. He isn’t “going to Disneyland”, he’s going home. He isn’t seeking endorsement deals, he is buying a horse. He isn’t pleading for more recognition, he is recognizing others around him. He isn’t holding up a trophy, he’s holding his child. He is a breath of fresh air in the modern sports world. – William Davis

Nikola Jokic holds his 21-month-old daughter while the celebratory confetti falls.

He’s truly a family man. After games he finds his family in the stands and points to his ring finger, referring not to a championship ring but to his wedding ring. A recent article in People Magazine features his home-town, childhood sweetheart, wife, Natalija. Here’s a snippet:

For Nikola, having the support of his wife and daughter has been invaluable while he competes in the NBA.

“I think all of us who have a wife and kids should be happy with the persons we have beside us,” he told Serbia’s Arena TV in January. “When you have a normal life, it lifts you up and only helps you.”

…

Since their wedding day, Nikola always keeps a piece of his bride close by — even when he’s on the road for the NBA. The Nuggets center now ties his wedding ring to his sneakers before every game…

We have to honor excellence and good character wherever we can find them; the Nuggets with Nikola Jokic and his teammates certainly inspire me.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. (1 Corinthians 9.24 – 25, NIV)

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. (Philippians 4.8, NIV)