The Miami Heat faced off against the Denver Nuggets on Monday night, and while the game ended in a loss for Miami, Heat rookie Nikola Jovic got a win out of the experience. The night before the game, Jovic got to have a big dinner with Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic.
Nikola Jokić and Nikola Jović at dinner last night in Miami pic.twitter.com/ipEuxFfEQK
— THE JOKER(S) 🃏🇷🇸🏆 (@SerbsInSports) February 13, 2023
Jovic is a Serbian basketball player still trying to get a foothold in the NBA world. When it comes to role models in that respect, there is no better player to look at than Jokic.
Jokic is now a five-time All-Star and two-time MVP. He is already considered by many to be the best passing big man in league history.
Though the Heat did not draft Jovic expecting him to turn out like Jokic has, they’d certainly be thrilled if that kind of progression ended up taking place.
As for Jovic himself, he admitted prior to the 2022 NBA Draft (in which the Heat selected him with the No. 27 overall pick) that one of his wishes was to meet Jokic.
“I have never met Jokic, but that is one of my wishes,” Jovic said. “I hope to meet him soon.”
It looks like that wish has now been accomplished for the young forward, and there are surely many more NBA-related wishes that he would like to check off his list as well.
When it comes to how Jovic has played on the court, there is still quite a lot of progression that has to be made now that he is playing in the best league in the world. Still, there have been flashes of his unique talent, and he has performed quite well in a small sample size with the Heat.
In 15 games (13.6 minutes per appearance), Jovic has put up 5.5 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. He hasn’t shot the ball particularly well, but improvement in that area will likely come with greater comfort for the playing style and speed of the NBA game.
Unfortunately, his development has had to take a brief pause, as he is currently out with a back issue.
Hopefully, he’ll be able to come back to the game soon so that he can continue getting used to the NBA.
