Nikola Jokic and the NBA’s Cultural Bias

Nikola Jokic has arguably been the best basketball player globally over the past decade. His performance has included some of the most statistically impressive stretches the sport has ever seen. He holds three MVP awards and has led his team to an NBA Championship.

Yet, it seems that the NBA, along with many players and media figures, hasn’t completely embraced him as a top figure within the sport.

For years, commentators at ESPN have insisted that Jokic couldn’t be the face of the league due to his European background. They have made similar claims regarding Luka Doncic.

Interestingly, this concern seems not to extend to Victor Wembanyama, who grew up in the suburbs of Paris.

Kendrick Perkins made quite a bold statement right after the San Antonio Spurs took down the Thunder in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals. He referred to Wembanyama as “the best thing to happen to the NBA since LeBron James in 2003.”

Back in 2023, Perkins urged MVP voters to demonstrate they weren’t favoring white or European athletes by choosing someone other than Jokic, despite Jokic’s deserving nature. The voters opted for Joel Embiid, a player of African descent.

Fast forward to the next year, Perkins warned that “international players are taking over basketball.” Others have echoed similar sentiments. Before Jokic captured his championship, Draymond Green remarked to Gilbert Arenas that European athletes weren’t held to the same championship-winning standards as American players, and he couldn’t quite comprehend why.

Even after Jokic claimed a title, some were still hesitant to recognize him as the top player worldwide. Former ESPN anchor Mark Jones said he couldn’t see Jokic in that light, while Arenas took it a step further, calling for the exclusion of “European players” in general.

“They are taking the league away from our people,” Arenas expressed.

At that moment, I felt that this rhetoric reflected a deeper resistance to acknowledging white athletes as equals in skill and stature.

I have to admit, it’s hard not to feel the buzz around Wembanyama. Standing at 7 feet 4 inches and possessing exceptional skills, he really is a unique presence on the court. Similar to legends like Shaquille O’Neal and LeBron James, he has an innate ability to draw attention. It’s quite possible he holds the greatest potential of any NBA prospect ever.

In simple terms, Wembanyama is likely to become a bigger star than Jokic, even if they wear the same uniform. Conversely, I can’t shake the feeling that Jokic would have been even more prominent if, well, if he weren’t white.

The backlash against Jokic aligns with the evident racism Caitlin Clark has faced within women’s basketball. The timing felt deliberate. Right after Jokic led the Nuggets to victory, ESPN branded him as a “great white hope,” which felt unwarranted, as there was little evidence pointing to a general perception of him in that light.

Even Ryen Rusillo acknowledged a campaign to push Jokic out of prominence, suggesting “Partly because he’s white.”

This week, Jason Whitlock touched on this subject, and former ESPN reporter Steve Kim pointed out that the same bias is mirrored in boxing. He expressed surprise if any racial bias didn’t exist between Wembanyama and Jokic.

“You often see a divide in how European fighters are treated compared to black European fighters,” Kim observed.

His comments shed light on why Wembanyama’s rise feels distinctly different.

It seems that the NBA culture might never fully embrace Wembanyama as an American-born black superstar, especially if he doesn’t align with popular cultural worlds like Hollywood or social activism. Yet, he may not hesitate to acknowledge his accomplishments like Jokic did.

It’s clear there was a noticeable hostility in discussions about Jokic. Some debates seem to carry a territorial vibe. Notably, many black players insist that basketball “is our league.”

But for these athletes, that sentiment feels more like a symptom rather than the cause of the issue at hand.

For quite a while, American cultural institutions have pushed the narrative that race plays a central role in social and political life. Naturally, this mindset encourages people to view success and influence through a racial lens. Many Democrats have worked to try to convince black Americans that white individuals should be regarded as adversaries.

Activist Dr. Umar Johnson voiced this viewpoint recently when discussing Eminem’s significance. He declared that a non-African could never be considered the greatest among Africans, calling it an offense to their heritage.

It’s interesting—there seems to be a parallel between his assertions about Eminem and how certain black athletes and commentators discuss white basketball players.

This isn’t a new phenomenon. Larry Bird faced similar scrutiny in the 1980s, with Dennis Rodman famously stating that Bird might be esteemed as a player, but if he were black, he would just be an average one.

Bird is widely viewed as a top-tier player, indeed one of the ten greatest ever, while Jokic has crafted a resume that places him among the top twenty. Yet, cultural stereotypes persist, suggesting that white athletes are less adept or less worthy of elite recognition.

A basketball coach in Wisconsin made an observation about this in 2024, suggesting that many believe white athletes need special treatment to be deemed equal to their black peers.

There’s some truth to that.

Many have been conditioned to think that, while white athletes may lack certain physical gifts, they somehow benefit from hidden privileges—creating an environment of resentment toward white athletes. Why is that?

In reality, the most prominent American athletes over the last four decades have predominantly been black.

Perceptions of racism in sports seem to particularly target white athletes, which is rather notable.

The resistance to Jokic was not solely about where he was from; it tied to his ascent as the leading player in an increasingly polarized culture regarding race. In some areas, anti-white sentiment has even been encouraged.

Furthermore, we cannot ignore that the NBA culture hasn’t necessarily protected American identities. Many top players have made overt criticisms of the U.S. while remaining largely silent about the actions of NBA partners overseas.

In conclusion, the league will probably welcome Wembanyama in a way they never did with Jokic. The sports landscape has historically been uncomfortable with a white athlete, whether from the U.S. or abroad, being labeled the crowned king of basketball.

In fact, the same critics might find themselves celebrating Wembanyama as the new, acceptable contender for the title of the best player globally, taking it from a big white Serbian.