After winning the 2023 NBA Championship, Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets well below pre-season expectations in 2024, falling in the second round playoffs to the Minnesota Timberwolves. It’s been a mixed offseason so far for the Nuggets, with the loss of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope but Added Russell Westbrook. But it appears Denver is considering another potential backcourt piece.
While Jamal Murray has solidified himself as the team’s starting point guard, the question of who can provide valuable bench minutes at both guard positions is still a question for the Nuggets. Westbrook, a former league MVP who has transformed into an energetic reserve leader with the Los Angeles Clippers, could very well fill the same role, though the Nuggets are reportedly interested in adding a player who has a strong connection to Jokic.
Vasilije Micic, currently a member of the Charlotte Hornets, recently won an Olympic bronze medal Micic and Jokic could be an interesting option for the Nuggets. Micic and Jokic played together at Belgrade-based Mega from 2012 to 2014 before Micic left for Bayern Munich. Jokic left the club a year later to join the Nuggets.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Nuggets could be a destination for Micic, although Denver might not make the move because of the salary implications.
“With a $7.7 million salary this season and an $8.1 million team option in 2025-26, Vasilije Micić continues to be mentioned as a potential trade target for Denver given Micic’s close relationship with Nuggets star Nikola Jokić,” Stein reported. “Keep in mind, though, that Denver is only about $5 million away from the second deck of the luxury tax and thus couldn’t absorb Micić’s contract without the dreaded complications of the second deck. The Hornets could also opt to keep Micić to play behind former All-Star LaMelo Ball.”
Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic and Hornets’ Vasilije Micic both win MVPs
In addition to their shared background, Nikola Jokic and Vasilije Micic are also both former MVPs; Jokic is a three-time NBA MVP, while Micic won the 2021 EuroLeague MVP and won the Final Four MVP in 2021 and 2022 while leading Anadolu Efes to back-to-back titles.
Micic, 29 at the time, decided to join the NBA in the 2023 offseason and signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder, to whom the Philadelphia 76ers traded his draft rights. Despite a three-year contract worth more than $23 million, Micic saw little playing time with the Thunder, who surprisingly became one of the best teams in the Western Conference.
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After averaging just 12.0 minutes per game in Oklahoma City, Micic traded to Charlottewhere he began to prove his worth to an NBA team. With the Hornets, Micic assumed a starting role in LaMelo Ball’s absence and averaged 10.8 points and 6.2 assists in 27.2 minutes per game.
Micic shone again at the Olympics, where he was Serbia’s third-leading scorer (behind Jokic and Bogdan Bogdanovic) and had the second-leading assists (behind Jokic). Serbia gave the United States their biggest test of the tournament, nearly beating the Americans in the semifinals, a game in which Micic underperformed (8 points, 3 assists, 3/10 shooting, 2/7 3PT). Micic was in fine form in the bronze medal game against Germany, however, scoring 19 points, matching Jokic’s lead in scoring. capped the tournament with a triple-double.
Micic has one guaranteed year remaining on his contract with the Hornets, who can choose to exercise a club option in 2025.
