The Nuggets’ NBA championship festivities turned into a family affair for Finals MVP Nikola Jokic on Monday night.
Moments after the Nuggets clinched their first-ever championship with a 94-89 win over the Miami Heat in Game 5, the star center celebrated on the court inside Denver’s Ball Arena with loved ones, including daughter Ognjena, whom he shares with wife Natalija.
When awarded the Bill Russell Finals MVP trophy by league commissioner Adam Silver, Jokic, 28, was cheered on by his teammates – while the adorable Ognjena appeared unfazed by the excitement.
Jokic then showed 1-year-old Ognjena his new hardware as “MVP” chants broke out.
The two-time league MVP also sweetly embraced wife Natalija on the court as his brothers, Strahinja and Nemanja, playfully lifted Nuggets head coach Michael Malone up in the air.
Jokic had a monster performance Monday with 28 points, 16 rebounds, and four assists.
He averaged 30 points, 13.5 rebounds, and nine-and-a-half assists throughout the playoffs, in which the Nuggets went 16-4.
“It’s why basketball is a fun sport, It’s a live thing. You can’t say this is going to happen until it happens,” the Serbian superstar said postgame. “It’s good, the job is done and we can go home now.”
Much like her dad, Ognjena has been one of the biggest stars of this NBA postseason.
During the Nuggets’ Western Conference semifinals series against the Suns last month, Ognjena appeared to point to her ring finger after Denver’s Game 2 win versus Phoenix, which Jokic mirrored.
Jokic and Natalija welcomed Ognjena in September 2021.
The couple has been married since October 2020.
