Nikola Jokić and his Denver Nuggets winning the 2023 championship was truly a pleasant surprise. The most unlikely candidate for a basketball career is not only making history but is fast becoming a much-loved entity globally. But what sets “The Joker” apart is his personality. And it was in full display tonight, right before the Hornets-Nuggets game.

A former Nuggets player, Ish Smith, is currently playing for Charlotte. But he got his first title with Denver last season. Before the tip-off though, his former team surprised him with a heartwarming gesture – presenting him with his NBA ring. In the heart-warming moment, Jokic’s hug with Smith stood out. It was as if he was meeting a dear friend after a long time. He cheered for his former teammate, who is now his opponent. The whole team joined.

And it’s got X (formerly Twitter) going wild with love for the Serbian horse-lover! Katy Winger, a reporter for the Nuggets, couldn’t keep her emotions in check as she captioned the moment, “I laughed I cried Ish Smith deserves it all,” with emotional emoticons at the end.

A fan of the Denver Nuggets shares his dream of finding someone “that looks at me the way Joker looks at Ish Smith.”

Another user seems to be quite touched by the love between the teammates.

And yet another one is especially moved by the love between the “boys“.

The one thing that stands out in all these comments is how much people value relationships. With trust and loyalty so hard to find these days, to find them amid a highly competitive sport makes it even more worth it. In all fairness, though (it could be the rarity factor), we can see more and more instances of love between players, even across different fields.

The most recent circumstance that comes to mind would be Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Vinicius Jr. The OKC Thunder superstar and the Real Madrid football star have developed a real friendship over the years. With both of them surprising each other at their games, we can look forward to more heartwarming moments between the stylish icons!

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Going back to the Nuggets’ love for their teammate, let’s take a look at Smith’s unique journey.

Ish Smith and his uncommon voyage

Among the different comments that were flowing in, one user had brought attention to Ish Smith’s rather impressive record.

The No. 14 Charlotte Hornets player holds the record of playing for the most franchises in the league. Across 13 years, the veteran point guard has played for 13 different teams! Going undrafted in the 2010 NBA draft season, Smith signed with the Houston Rockets in August 2010. Since then, Ish has been traded on pretty much a regular basis. Sometimes even in the same year by multiple teams!

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• Feb 19, 2015 – Traded to the New Orleans Pelicans and was waived later in the day.
• Feb 22. 2015- Signed with the Philadelphia 76ers
• Sep 25, 2015 – Signed with the Washington Wizards, but waived on Oct 24th.
• Oct 26, 2015 – Claimed off the waiver by Pelicans once again to be traded to the Sixers yet again on Dec 24th.

The longest he has played is for the Detroit Pistons from 2016 to 2019. It was quite an impressive run for the man as well. So, you can imagine the pure joy he felt to receive his first-ever ring during his short run with the Nuggets.

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