Nikola Jokic on being famous: “I don’t really like this life”

When Denver Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic retires, don’t expect to see him at league events or partying in Las Vegas.

In fact, unless you plan to frequent horse racing tracks overseas, don’t expect to see him at all. Jokic would prefer to keep a low profile—or at least, as low a profile as a 7-foot multiple-time MVP can keep.

“Being famous, I think some people like it,” Jokic said in an appearance on teammate Michael Porter Jr.’s podcast Curious Mike. “I don’t, really. When I finish my career, I really wish nobody knows me, and I really wish my kid, or kids in the future, who knows, really remember me as a dad, not as a basketball player. That’s going to be my goal in life, to not have a phone. That’s another big goal of mine. Just to live in the moment, be a normal person.”

Jokic added that he hates when he is photographed while out in public, whether at a store or at a bar.

“It just feels sad,” he said.

Nikola Jokic, #15 of the Denver Nuggets, looks on during the second half against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on December 22, 2023, in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Nuggets won…Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

Jokic is paradoxically famous for being a private person. When the Nuggets won the championship last year, his muted reaction (“The job is done. We can go home now”) went viral. On Curious Mike, Jokic described meeting his wife, who grew up in a nearby town in Serbia. When he got married, few people knew about the event.

“I really don’t like this life because, at the end of the day, we are just basketball players,” Jokic said. “We are just good at what we’re doing. But media is something that’s around us, and of course, we’re getting paid because of the media, because of the popularity.”

To that point: Jokic might not like the fame, but he’s too talented to remain in the shadows in the United States, even in a relatively small media market like Denver. This season, the 28-year-old two-time league MVP is nearly averaging a triple-double: 26.3 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9.2 assists per game. Behind his singular talents, the defending NBA champions have the second-best record in the Western Conference at 23-10 behind the resurgent Minnesota Timberwolves (23-7).

Porter asked Jokic if he can live like a normal person in Serbia, and what he wants to do after his playing career.

“How I want to see myself is to be around the family,” Jokic said. “Spending days with my kid. Maybe they are going to play some sport, maybe they are going to do something interesting. Follow them a little bit, and spend the rest of the day with the horses. I have a couple of horses outside of Serbia in Italy, in Sweden, in France, go, maybe race. That’s my secret goal.”

That’s not to say Jokic dislikes playing in the NBA, or winning basketball games. He described to Porter how the Nuggets built a “lifestyle” of winning, and how winning a championship brought a sense of relief.

Winning a title also taught Jokic how powerful basketball can be for fans. He recalled watching videos of fans celebrating the Nuggets championship in their homes.

“When I saw the video, I was like, ‘Whoa, we affect so many people. Kids, parents, this is a big thing,'” Jokic told Porter. “At the end of the day, we’re just playing basketball. I think that’s why we are on this planet Earth: To make other people happy.”