If you’ve kept tabs on Nikola Jokic, you may know his passion for basketball seems to pale in comparison to his love of the horses he races. That reality was pretty evident based on how he reacted after one of his animals earned a victory in his native Serbia—especially when you compared his celebration to the one we witnessed after he won a title.

It’s been a little over a decade since the Denver Nuggets got what is arguably the biggest steal in the history of the NBA Draft when they selected Nikola Jokic with the 41st overall pick in 2014.

In doing so, they earned the right to sign a player who’s earned Most Valuable Player honors three times in the regular season (and arguably deserved even more), been named to the All-Star Game seven straight times since his first selection in 2019, and led the franchise to its first championship while winning Finals MVP in 2023.

Jokic may be one of the best players of his generation, but the man who’s earned $250 million (so far) by playing basketball for a living is a surprisingly relatable figure when you consider there’s a lot of evidence he views the sport as a day job more than anything else—a notion that may be rooted in meme that’s been blown a bit out of proportion but is still more compelling than you might think at first glance.

After the Nuggets won the title, Jokic seemed genuinely dismayed to learn he’d have to stick around in Denver for the parade while making it pretty clear there was nothing he’d like to do more than head back to his native Serbia (although it’s worth noting he changed his tune once the festivities kicked off).

https://www.tiktok.com/@cbssports/video/7244211337717402922?lang=en

Jokic made it clear his preference for an early exit stemmed from his desire to attend a horse race back in the country where he was born and raised; the big man devotes a sizeable chunk of the offseason to overseeing the more than half a dozen steeds he cares for at the stable that he owns, and he takes great pride in their performance at the harness events he routinely enters them in.

His passion for the pastime was very evident based on how ecstatic he was when one of his horses reigned supreme in a race that was held at the hippodrome in Srbobran over the weekend, as he was beaming like a proud dad after watching his team get the victory.

Nikola Jokić slavi pobedu u Srbobranu! pic.twitter.com/Y8zjUDi1In

— Arena Sport TV (@arenasport_tv) July 6, 2025

That’s particularly amusing when you contrast it with his demeanor after the Nuggets sealed the deal against the Heat a couple of years ago, as he was decidedly more stoic in the wake of the biggest moment of his career.

https://youtu.be/7cp-D0u_0g0?t=19

At least he has a couple more months to keep doing what he loves most before heading back to work.

The post Nikola Jokic Showed More Emotion When His Horse Won A Race In Serbia Than He Did After Securing An NBA Title appeared first on BroBible.