NBA fans have become familiar with a running joke about Nikola Jokic: that he treats basketball like a 9-to-5 job, counting down the days until he can return to Serbia and his horses. His subdued reaction to winning the NBA championship—especially compared to his euphoric celebration after capturing Olympic bronze in Paris—only reinforces the narrative that his heart and passion fully emerge only when representing his home country.
The reality, however, is far more nuanced. Jokic’s journey with the Serbian national team has been defined more by heartbreak than triumph. That bronze medal, precious as it was, stands as a rare highlight in an otherwise frustrating international career. The pattern of disappointment has been remarkably consistent, with the latest setback coming at this year’s EuroBasket—Serbia’s stunning loss to underdog Finland in the quarter finals, eerily mirroring their previous EuroBasket early exit against Italy. Both campaigns ended in shock, adding another chapter to the story of unfulfilled expectations for Nikola Jokic’s FIBA career.
Another Disappointing Chapter in Nikola Jokic’s FIBA Career
Serbia entered this year’s EuroBasket as title contenders, only to watch a familiar nightmare unfold. Echoing their disappointment from three years ago, they had to cope with the loss of Bogdan Bogdanovic to injury, who by far is their best and potentially only consistent perimeter creator. His absence exposed the limitations of this Serbian roster, leading to an offense that became stagnant and predictable without him.
The loss proved particularly devastating in this year’s tournament, given that Vasilije Micic is also far from his peak form. While role players like Stefan Jovic, Nikola Jovic, and Aleksa Avramovic provide value, none possess the shot-creation ability needed to survive EuroBasket’s unforgiving modern landscape—where top nations boast world-class talent, and even less talented rosters either feature exceptional coaching that makes them incredibly difficult to beat (like Spain) or possess multiple NBA-level or near-NBA-level players (like Georgia).
Among those threats are national teams like Finland. While clearly not having the most talented roster, Finland still has a borderline All-Star among their ranks in Lauri Markkanen and several impressive professionals competing at a high level in Europe.
Similar to their loss to Italy three years ago, a barrage of threes fueled by an incredibly effective small-ball lineup deployed by Finnish coach Lassi Tuovi, combined with an unforgettable fourth quarter from Elias Valtonen—arguably the best quarter of his career—propelled Finland to a historic upset over Serbia.
The Jokić Paradox: Why Serbia’s Greatest Player Shines Brightest in Denver
This pattern highlights an uncomfortable truth: while casual observers might believe the narrative that Jokic saves his best for the Serbian national team, we’ve rarely seen his full level of brilliance with them. The main difference lies in what the Nuggets have built around the three-time MVP. In Denver, former head coach Michael Malone spent years developing a revolutionary offense able to capitalize on Jokic’s unprecedented skill set for a center. The result is a system that gives him the level of control normally reserved for heliocentric offensive geniuses like LeBron James or Luka Doncic, while still not dominating the ball to the same extent due to his center position.
Serbia’s story couldn’t be more different. Though Jokic’s role has evolved and the times of baffling benchings and forced twin-tower lineups are behind us, the national team still hasn’t come close to unlocking “Denver Jokic.” We don’t see him pushing the ball in transition after grabbing a rebound, running inverted pick-and-rolls, or orchestrating a DHO-heavy offense that creates constant motion.
Of course, one major reason is the undeniable difference in personnel. Serbia lacks a Jamal Murray-type guard (with the possible exception of Bogdanovic) for a devastating two-man game, or someone with the freakish athleticism of an Aaron Gordon lurking in the dunker’s spot to finish alley-oops off Jokic’s passes in short-roll situations.
How to Break the FIBA Curse
To be fair, the most effective solution is also a quite simple one. That is to finally have Jokic and Bogdanovic play together frequently, allowing them to develop an on-court relationship similar to what the three-time MVP has with Jamal Murray. Injuries and unfortunate timing have sabotaged this partnership, but their chemistry remains Serbia’s best hope for international glory.
Additionally, their refusal to naturalize foreign players—a principled stance that honors their basketball heritage—may unfortunately have come at the cost of trophies. While rivals have used naturalized American-born talent to fill roster holes, Serbia stood firm and only allow actual Serbians to represent them internationally. To be honest, there are more than enough dynamic American guards who could have led to glory.
And finally, Serbian coach Svetislav Pesic might also need to rethink his basketball philosophy and simply try to replicate the Nuggets’ offense to get the best out of their greatest ever player. In doing so, hopefully Nikola Jokic’s FIBA career can eventually match the success of his NBA success.
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