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Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama are part of the same European revolution dominating NBA accolades in recent years, but it’s clear that the two men don’t have much else in common.
While getting ready for Saturday’s All-Star Weekend action, Jokic took note of Wembanyama’s reading materials and asked, “You really brought a book?” The French star was nonplussed about the line of questioning, responding “Yes, I read before every game,” which only seemed to deepen Jokic’s confusion.
Jokic and Wembanyama both found themselves in San Francisco this past weekend for the All-Star Game after tremendous respective starts to the 2024-25 NBA season at the center position.
Jokic: “You really brought a book?”
Wembanyama: “Yeah! I read before every game.”
Jokic: pic.twitter.com/7GpckdPua7
— Jokic Muse (@_JokicMuse_) February 16, 2025
The Serbian star made a familiar mid-season stop at All-Star Weekend, averaging a near-30-point triple double so far for the Nuggets while earning his seventh-straight appearance in the game. Meanwhile, Wembanyama has taken his game to new heights after a dominant rookie season last year, averaging more than 24 points and nearly 4 blocks as he leads the Spurs back to playoff contention.
However, Jokic and Wembanyama found themselves on opposite ends of a more contentious All-Star Weekend discussion. Support has been growing for an All-Star format pitting American-born players against those from the rest of the world, which has achieved support from the French-born Wembanyama and Greece’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, but Jokic believes the talent disparity is still too vast.
"The USA has more talented players than the rest of the world," said Jokic, the three-time MVP from Serbia who led Denver to the NBA title in 2023. "Europe and the rest of the world has talented players, I think, but the majority of the players are coming from USA."