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Eurohoops: 🙌🇷🇸 Nikola Jokic didn’t like the fact that Nikola Topic didn’t high five to everybody on the bench when he was subbed and made him get up an greet all his teammates. #Eurobasket True leadership 👏 pic.x.com/JIPA4mDTpq
🙌🇷🇸 Nikola Jokic didn’t like the fact that Nikola Topic didn’t high five to everybody on the bench when he was subbed and made him get up an greet all his teammates. #Eurobasket
— Eurohoops (@Eurohoopsnet) August 16, 2025
True leadership 👏 pic.twitter.com/JIPA4mDTpq
While most rookies take baby steps when they reach the league, Topić took his on crutches. But it took getting injured for him to realize how strong he really was. And after a lengthy recovery process and a warmup run in NBA Summer League, he's ready to hit his stride with OKC this upcoming season. "I didn't play a basketball game for a very long time, and that was really hard," Topić said. "But as you go through that process, you learn something about yourself that you didn't know you had. ... I took positives from it and learned from it."
"(Holmgren) just told me to be patient, that my time would come and that I have to take it," Topić said. "But everybody else, we talked on a daily basis. They gave advice, obviously. It really helps a lot that you have young teammates who can understand you. That's really amazing."
Confirming recent projections, Nikola Jokic will play for Serbia in the EuroBasket 2025. The selections by head coach Svetislav Pesic, which shaped a 17-player preliminary list for the senior national team, were revealed on Monday. Notable call-ups include Tristan Vukcevic, selecting Serbia as his international assignment. More NBA options stretch to Nikola Topic debuting at the senior level and Nikola Djurisic en route to his first appearance in the final stage of a senior tournament. Captain Bogdan Bogdanovic is the fifth currently active NBA player.
What are your impressions of Nikola Topic? Ajay Mitchell: “I really enjoy playing with him. He’s a great guard and a high-IQ guard. He’s a really good point guard. I’m excited to play with him. We’re understanding how we can play with each other. We’re understanding how I can be off the ball and how he can be on the ball as well as how I can be on the ball and how he can be off the ball. We’re being able to have that connection on that court.”
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Jorge Sierra: Nikola Topic is the third-youngest NBA player to win a title. He has a championship before playing a game in the NBA.
Ahead of Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Pacers on Monday, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said he's been impressed with how the 2024 first-round pick has handled what is essentially a redshirt season. "In terms of what he's doing right now, he's still X amount of time post-op," Daigneault said. "He's still return-to-performance. I don't think he's the player right now that he will be in training camp. "The thing that's most impressive about him to see is he's incredibly young, he's stateside for the first time, in the NBA for the first time, coming off a long-term injury and he's been unbelievably consistent and mature and professional in his approach. When you watch somebody go through that, you can learn a lot about them."
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Clemente Almanza: Lu Dort on Nikola Topic: "He's been doing a lot of his recovery stuff but you can see the talent and how much more comfortable with the ball. Recently, he started playing with us and be a little more active with us. He's still getting back from his injury but I can see just how comfortable with the ball and the type of player he's going to be."
Vinny Benedetto: Aaron Gordon is officially questionable for G7 with a hamstring strain. Jamal Murray is probable with an illness. Russell Westbrook also probable with a right hand sprain. Hunter Tyson is questionable with a right ankle sprain. Nikola Topic is only player on OKC's injury report.
Rylan Stiles: Thunder's injury report for Game 2 vs. Grizzlies: Nikola Topic (ACL) OUT Ousmane Dieng (Calf) OUT
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