DeMarcus Cousins Highlights NBA’s Challenge in Marketing Nikola Jokic
Former NBA star DeMarcus Cousins recently shed light on why the league struggles to effectively market Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic.
The Nuggets’ season concluded with a heartbreaking Game 7 defeat to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Despite the disappointment, Denver’s playoff performance was commendable, especially considering the front office shake-up that occurred just before the end of the regular season, which included the firing of their head coach and general manager.
Nikola Jokic delivered a strong showing throughout the series, pushing Oklahoma City harder than any other team had in the current postseason. Yet, even with his remarkable performance and a résumé that includes three MVP awards, Jokic is rarely brought up in conversations about the league’s most marketable stars or the “face of the NBA.”
Cousins, a former Nuggets player himself, recently offered his take on the situation. “As great as he is, you can’t sell him…he doesn’t care about the spotlight,” Cousins said during an appearance on FanDuel’s Run It Back show.
Jokic is known for his no-nonsense approach to the game. He avoids the limelight, rarely engages in media narratives, and spends most of his offseason back home in Serbia. With no active presence on social media, he doesn’t align with the modern athlete archetype that’s typically easy for the NBA to promote in today’s highly digital and image-driven era.
Since their postseason exit, the Nuggets have started to take steps to regroup. One major move was officially naming David Adelman as head coach, removing his interim title following the departure of Michael Malone.
While Denver proved to be the toughest opponent Oklahoma City has faced so far, it’s apparent that the Nuggets may still need to add another key contributor to fully leverage Jokic’s elite skill set. Whether that involves parting ways with players like Michael Porter Jr. or even Jamal Murray remains to be seen.
As for Jokic, don’t expect him to publicly voice any strong opinions about offseason changes or roster moves. Quiet and focused, he’ll likely remain out of the headlines while the team prepares for the upcoming NBA Draft later this month.
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