Nikola Jokic becomes unenthusiastic fan for Deion Sanders' Colorado against Texas Tech

Nikola Jokic becomes unenthusiastic fan for Deion Sanders' Colorado against Texas Tech originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Colorado Buffaloes under head coach Deion Sanders are no strangers to celebrity-riddled sidelines. This is a program that once walked out to play a game while 5-time Grammy Award winner Lil Wayne performed "Sky's the Limit" live and unannounced.

The Folsom Field sidelines have been graced by Master P, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, DaBaby, C.C. Sebathia, Terrell Owens, Michael Irvin and several social media influencers. Seeing huge names in sports and entertainment is not uncommon. There was, however, a noticeable drop in the frequency and volume of A-listers since the 2024 season.

As the Buffaloes hosted the Texas Tech Red Raiders, there was an uptick in celebrities who decided to turn up for the Buffs' first ranked opponent at home. Both former WWE superstar Bill Goldberg and former Denver Bronco Aqib Talib were in attendance as both have family who play for the Buffs.

Every now and again, there are surprises on the Folsom sidelines. At this point, the surprises don't come from friends of Prime, rappers, actors or even athletes from Sanders' past.

When famous "influencers" make the trip, it feels strange. Jordan Stallion made an appearance today. If you're unfamiliar, Jordan is known for trying food in videos and when it's really great, he throws his glasses against the wall. There are few people in social media circles who have never seen Jordan. Even Stallion wasn't the biggest surprise.

Nikola Jokic was a surprise, his lack of enthusiasm was not

Jokic is hard to miss. He's even harder to miss when the college football game he attends is within a short driving distance of Ball Arena where the Nuggets play their home games. At roughly 7'0 and 285 pounds, Jokic doesn't walk into anywhere unnoticed. The surprising part was Jokic as the straggler.

Long before the entire stadium noticed Jokic, his teammates had already made their appearance. Cam Johnson and newly acquired NBA All-Star DeMar DeRozan quietly made their way to the east sideline almost unnoticed. Within a few minutes, most of the fans on that side of the stadium were aware of their presence.

DeRozan led the group of players into an area a mere ten feet from the Colorado bench. Unlike most famous VIPs, DeRozan seemed more than happy to entertain fans, take pictures and even especially speak with young fans as they swarmed. Cam Johnson participated, but appeared to feel like DeRozan's plus one as everyone wanted to see DeRozan. That was until Jokic appeared just outside the players' tunnel.

Colorado fans are very accustomed to Jokic and his temperament. He might be the greatest NBA player who looks like he'd rather not be there. At NBA games. Jokic is the poster child for whenever the NBA thing stops being fun, I'm out. The worst kept secret in the NBA is that Jokic loves his horses in Serbia more than his 'job'.

At no point in the pregame period did Nikola look like he even wanted to be there. The first few minutes of him on the sideline looked familiar to NBA fans. It was almost the embodiment of his "when is parade" moment. After winning the NBA Finals, a local radio personality asked him about the victory parade. Jokic was momentarily devastated at the idea that he could not go home yet.

Jokic did his best to look interested from a body language standpoint. Almost using DeRozan as a disguise. Jokic looked like Jokic attending something he wasn't completely prepared for. He recently made minor news admitting that he doesn't enjoy the celebrity aspect of his job and often refuses to take pictures with fans in public.

Jokic was a good sport today, if that is, in fact the case. He didn't stop to take pictures with anyone but also did not have a problem with many people snapping pictures he just happened to be in the frame for. He simply took in the moment, standing next to DeRozan. Fine with DeRozan as the fan engagement ring leader.

There is a reason the Nuggets chose to attend this game. Jokic is from Serbia. DeRozan is from Los Angeles. Cam Johnson is from western Pennsylvania. Earlier this week, Sanders spoke with the Nuggets coaches and players, giving his typical words of encouragement. The Nuggets also held their training camp at the CU Events Center, making this almost an appearance home-at-home.

At halftime, the Colorado Buffaloes led the No. 11 Texas Tech Red Raiders, 7-3. Texas Tech leads Colorado in rushing yards by almost 20, while Colorado leads in passing yards by 70. Both teams are playing in a way that is contrary to expectations.

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