For those of you who've been to Chicago, you know it's a gumbo of ethnicities. You miss a stop or two on the "L" and you're dinner plans just changed from penne to pirogies.
If you didn't know, Chicago is home to one of the largest Serbian populations outside of Serbia. So when Serbian born Nuggets big-man Nikola Jokic stepped foot on the Bulls center stage the Serbian flags flew. Nugget's head coach Michael Malone told the Denver Post that he was impressed by their enthusiasm, and that fans who came to see him in Chicago followed the team up to Milwaukee the next night. What was equally as impressive was his performance. In back-to-back nights on the road, the 22 year old Serb was the first Nuggets player since Dikembe Mutombo to earn back-to-back triple doubles leading the Nuggs to a 125 - 107 victory against the Bulls, and a 110 - 98 win over the Bucks. [caption id="attachment_10487" align="aligncenter" width="389"]
Photo by Isaiah J. Downing - USA Today Sports[/caption]
In the moments following the game, reporters noted that Jokic was surrounded by dozens of Serbian fans, and the big man wore a full-face smile. Jokic said "It was just really cool. Just Serbian flags all over the place, people calling my name, hearing my language. It was really fun, It felt like home."
After watching Jokic, you'll see he's got a great heart, great passion, and a true love for the game. He's making centers relevant in the game, and best of all he's bringing new fans to the game. I'll be a fan of Jokic - not only because he's fantastic ball player - but because he's a big part of what makes the NBA great.
