Nikola Jokic led the Denver Nuggets to the franchise’s first-ever NBA championship with his biggest supporter by his side, wife Natalija.
The Serbian superstar, who was named Finals MVP in June 2023 after the Nuggets defeated the Heat, 94-89, in Game 5 of the championship series, shared a sweet postgame moment with Natalija and the couple’s 1-year-old daughter, Ognjena, inside Ball Arena in Denver.
The family also posed for photos with the Larry O’Brien championship trophy and the Bill Russell Finals MVP award, which Ognjena playfully used as drums and tapped the top of each trophy.
Jokic is a family man.
The five-time All-Star, who won back-to-back league MVPs in 2021 and 2022, wears his wedding ring on his shoelaces every single game.
The 28-year-old center said he stole the idea from a former teammate in his native Serbia and does it as a way to keep his family close while on the court, according to the NBA.
Nikola Jokic and Natalija at NBA All-Star in Chicago in February 2020.
Instagram/Natalija Jokic
Although Jokic keeps a low profile off the court, Natalija often shares the family’s milestones on her personal Instagram page, which has more than 29,000 followers.
Get to know more about Natalija and the couple’s private life.
Nikola Jokic and wife Natalija’s simple and private life
The couple usually spends the NBA offseason in their hometown of Sombor, Serbia, according to The Denver Post, which said Jokic is protective over his private time at home.
In fact, when Jokic won his second consecutive MVP award in May 2022, Nuggets coach Michael Malone, then-team president Tim Connelly, and some team personnel surprised the 7-footer in Sombor to hand-deliver the trophy.
Team brass pulled off the surprise with the help of Natalija, and Jokic accepted the award from a horse stable in Sombor.
Nikola Jokic and his wife Natalija in October 2012.
Instagram/Natalija Jokic
It’s all part of the couple’s simple life in Serbia when Jokic isn’t breaking records on the court.
In February 2021, when Jokic won Western Conference Player of the Month, he told reporters he celebrated “with my wife at home,” adding, “… I mean, that’s what I did.”
Who is Nikola Jokic’s wife?
Natalija Jokic graduated from the Metropolitan State University of Denver in May 2018, according to her Instagram.
She reportedly moved to the United States in 2013 to play volleyball at Seminole State College in Oklahoma while Jokic was playing basketball in Serbia.
Natalija Jokic celebrating her 25th birthday in January 2020.
Instagram/Natalija Jokic
Natalija relocated to Denver with Jokic when he signed with the Nuggets in 2015.
The couple lived with Jokic’s two older brothers, Nemanja and Strahinja, in a three-bedroom apartment in Denver in 2017, according to Bleacher Report.
Natalija sometimes accompanies Jokic on the road and was present for his back-to-back All-Star appearances in 2019 and 2020, which took place in Charlotte and Chicago, respectively.
“All-star of my heart,” she wrote on Instagram in 2019.
When did Nikola Jokic get married?
Jokic and Natalija tied the knot in their hometown of Sombor, Serbia, on Oct. 24, 2020.
The wedding was originally scheduled for June 2020 but was pushed back after the NBA moved its season to the bubble in Florida during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The high school sweethearts, who met in their hometown, got engaged in January 2020.
“I think all of us who have a wife and kids should be happy with the persons we have beside us,” Jokic told Serbia’s Arena TV in January 2023.
Nikola Jokic and Natalija after he proposed in January 2020.
Instagram/Natalija Jokic
“When you have a normal life, it lifts you up and only helps you.”
Does Nikola Jokic have children?
Jokic and Natalija welcomed a baby girl named Ognjena in September 2021.
In January 2022, Natalija shared an Instagram photo from what appeared to be her baby shower and wrote: “Thank you 2021, you were my favorite so far,” along with a pregnancy emoji.
Natalija Jokic at her baby shower.
Instagram/Natalija Jokic
Natalija and Ognjena regularly attend Jokic’s games.
After the Nuggets defeated the Phoenix Suns in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals in May 2023, TNT cameras caught Jokic and his daughter sharing a sweet moment.
Ognjena, who was in the stands with her mom and wearing her dad’s No. 15 jersey, appeared to point to her ring finger, seemingly referring to Jokic chasing his first NBA title at the time — and the star center repeated the gesture back.
As for the future?
Jokic said in a 2017 profile with Bleacher Report that when he hangs his jersey up for good, he wants to return to the couple’s native Sombor.
“After my career is over, I’m gonna go back there,” he said at the time. “It’s super slow — not too much going on — but you have everything.
The Denver Nuggets pose with the Western Conference Finals Trophy after completing a sweep against the Lakers in four games on May 22, 2023 at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California.
NBAE via Getty Images
“You have a canal, nature; you can get peace of mind outside the city. I just like to be someplace where I know how to drive a car without navigation.
“How I say, no place like home? Something like that.”
