His story shares common traits with that of Antetokounmpo.

One of the top basketball players in the world is coming to Cyprus for the ECOMMBX Cup! Nikola Jokić is an unconventional star who, wearing the jersey of the Serbian national team, will compete in the tournament hosted on August 9 and 10 at the Spyros Kyprianou Athletic Center, just days before the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 (August 28 – September 4).

Jokić's Serbia will face Greece on August 9 (20:30) and Cyprus on August 10 (17:00).

Why is Jokić considered unconventional? Because the "Joker" doesn’t fit the mold we’re used to seeing from NBA superstars. Looking at childhood photos of him, no one would have suspected that this kid could one day become an athlete. Even when his body began to take shape during his teenage years, it was still hard to predict that Nikola Jokić would become one of the greatest basketball players in the world.

His story shares similarities with that of Giannis Antetokounmpo, especially in the way he was discovered. Just like the "Greek Freak," the "Joker" was a product of NBA scouting. Talent scouts who traveled to Europe from across the Atlantic saw early on in him what no other European could see.

The Denver Nuggets selected him late—at just No. 41 in the 2014 NBA Draft—when he was only 19 and still playing for Mega Basket. In fact, it has gone down in history that when his name was announced at No. 41, the live broadcast had cut to a commercial… for a fast-food chain!

A year later, he made the transatlantic leap and quickly evolved into a superstar. But not in the usual way. As we said, Jokić is unconventional.

Many other Europeans (including Giannis) had to spend countless hours in the gym and change their daily habits to shape their bodies accordingly in order to survive in the competitive NBA. But the Joker didn’t need any of that.

And the truth is, he never fit into the mold dictated by the star system. He’s someone who doesn’t care if his image gets "bruised" by what he does (or doesn’t do). Just a few days ago, he ran alongside a train in China, making many people laugh, especially when he pretended… to win the race. Or the video that recently went viral showing him celebrating one of his horses winning a race—more passionately than he might if he won both the NBA title and the Olympic gold medal at the same time!

Things like these make him so lovable, and over thirty thousand Chinese fans did everything they could to see him up close during a recent event in their country!

Nikola Jokić is a man who loves basketball. He plays with both heart and mind. Especially the latter—he’s proven time and again how smartly he plays the game. Three-time NBA regular season MVP (2021, 2022, 2024), NBA champion and Finals MVP in 2023. Jokić now wants to lead Serbia to gold at the FIBA EuroBasket 2025, one year after winning Olympic bronze in Paris.

Cypriot basketball fans (and not only them) are eager to welcome him to the Spyros Kyprianou Athletic Center in Limassol, where a packed crowd is expected…