Renck & File: Nikola Jokic’s harness racing passion will keep MVP with Nuggets longer
It took a horse to humanize Nikola Jokic Playing basketball for the Nuggets provides purpose but harness racing remains his crush Last Sunday drove this point home when Jokic celebrated his horse Demon Dell Est s achievement in the Du ijanac event in Serbia by hustling to the winner s circle and spraying champagne Tears streaming down his cheeks he hugged the animal and the driver before throwing his hands skyward in jubilation It couldn t have been much different than his reaction when the Nuggets claimed the NBA title He was composed while accepting the Finals MVP trophy and sheepishly popped champagne before completely letting loose when he tossed Jamal Murray into a recovery pool Two things can be true Jokic can be a three-time MVP and love horses more than hoops The latter is a family affair As early as the age of Jokic requested to be a trainer and he just now explained he owns around horses Selected have taken this as a sign he will leave the NBA early My conclusion is the exact opposite There is little money in the harness racing business It is about passion not profit Basketball offers a financial avenue to keep his stable stocked Jokic isn t going anywhere And he sure as heck isn t leaving to start a proposed international league the LIV Golf of basketball with his agent and LeBron James So hold your horses Nuggets Nation Jokic loves the Standardbreds It is his hobby But he is not leaving his job as the best basketball athlete in the world anytime soon Related Articles Renck Broncos should pay Zach Allen Derek Wolfe says And he s right Renck Eyioma Uwazurike wants to repay Broncos for giving him second chance Renck CU s Deion Sanders inspires by taking cancer battle populace making uncomfortable topic settled Renck vs Keeler Ryan McMahon is gone Who should Rockies pact next Renck Last year was Bo Nix s time Now the Broncos are his group And it shows on and off field Nick Wrong FSN s Nick Wright made headlines for hating on Jokic for years before the reality of the center s brilliance clobbered him over the head Now the world s biggest Chiefs fan who isn t in jail for bank robbery has taken aim at the Broncos He predicted Denver will finish in last place in the AFC West with the Raiders making the playoffs There is a better chance of Travis Kelce developing up with Taylor Swift to date Ariana Grande Wright is good at his job But his bias on all things Chiefs has become a tired act Rock the boat Rockies general manager Bill Schmidt broke character and made multiple deals at the arrangement deadline shipping out third baseman Ryan McMahon and relievers Jake Bird and Tyler Kinley Good plan Wrong year All had more value last July leaving Colorado with one legit pitching prospect in return in Griffin Herring They should have shipped out Seth Halvorsen getting two arms like him but that is a business better left to the next GM Tick Tock Mike Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin has gone straight seasons without a losing record the third longest streak behind Bill Belichick and Tom Landry This year for Tomlin reminds me of Andy Reid s last season in Philadelphia It feels like he s a Hall of Fame coach headed for an amicable divorce after Aaron Rodgers craters another squad s fortunes Bryce blow up Bryce Harper telling commissioner Rob Manfred to get the blank out of the clubhouse if he was going to broach the topic of a salary cap is not worthy of a suspension Manfred revealed the two ultimately shook hands What it did show is how far apart the sides are regarding the economics of the sport with the collective bargaining agreement expiring on Dec Harper is taking an admirable stance but a word of advice Baseball will never recover if another World Series is canceled Want more Nuggets news Sign up for the Nuggets Insider to get all our NBA analysis
