“Just because I don’t smile, I don’t laugh doesn’t mean I’m not excited… I’m excited, I just don’t show it,” Nikola Jokic had once claimed. Pretty ironic that someone named ‘The Joker’ would even be called out over his constant serious expressions. While the Serbian star does like to kid around a lot, his decade-long tenure in the NBA has also established him as someone who often gives off a ‘serious man’ vibe due to his alleged stern face. That persona of Jokic, however, was recently broken by another NBA legend, who is all about the fun.

After the Denver Nuggets beat the Philadelphia 76ers last night, Nikola Jokic was interviewed by the memorable crew over at ‘NBA on TNT’. Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal suddenly brought out a belt in the middle of the conversation. Shaped in the style of a Wrestling Championship Belt, the buckle contained a picture of Shaq with ‘Big Man Alliance’ printed alongside it.

Calling himself the ‘President of the Big Man Alliance’, the 4x NBA champ brought out the belt to Jokic, since Shaq considered him the ‘best big man in the league by far’. This caused the Nuggets star to not only smile brightly but also laugh like someone who seemed to be full of life. Jokic expressed his delight by stating “Thank you, Shaq. I love it.”

As it turned out, the TNT crew wasn’t done with the Serb just yet. Host Adam Lefkoe broke into a rendition of 50 Cent’s ‘Many Men’. This was a reference to DeAndre Jordan recently revealing that the rapper’s song is amongst Jokic’s favorites. As the 3x MVP laughed, Shaq decided to kick things up a notch by singing part of the song in Serbian! Jokic denied Jordan’s claim that he knew every word of the song. However, he did indicate potentially performing that song, or any song, sometime in the future.

If there was anyone who could break Nikola Jokic’s serious demeanor, it was the Big Aristotle. The majority of Shaq’s remarks about Jokic are filled with nothing but praise. After all, not everyone gets the honor of being gifted Shaq’s custom ‘Big Man Alliance’ belt. In a way, Shaq may even see the Serbian as a version of himself. As a result, the former player does not mind often drawing comparisons between him and the Nuggets star.

Shaquille O’Neal once used a hilarious video to compare him and ‘favorite player’ Nikola Jokic: “This is awesome”

Back in May 2024, Shaquille O’Neal took to Instagram to share a post with his 30 Million+ followers. The same highlighted an individual standing behind two bowls containing glasses. One glass was meant to represent Nikola Jokic. The other Shaquille O’Neal. The water in the glasses highlighted how efficient both are in certain stats. Shaq gained points in scoring, defense, athleticism, dominance, and taking things personally. Jokic topped in scoring bag, Bball IQ, free throw (of course), etc.

The creator roasted both athletes by only ‘spraying’ when the comparison stat was ‘Diet’. This indicated that both players can’t control their food intake. Well, you don’t become a ‘big man’ out of doing nothing.

Shaq liked the video enough to share it as a post. He also added a caption that read: “this is awesome and hillarious my four favorite players are @stephencurry30 @theanthonyedwards_ @giannis_an34 and the joker couldn’t find his @”

The bond between Shaquille O’Neal and Nikola Jokic wasn’t something people asked for, but it’s still something they enjoy thoroughly. With NBA on TNT moving to ESPN next season, we’re glad we’ll get to see these two icons continue their banter.