Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
On Thursday, Nikola Jokic became the fifth NBA player to score at least 50 points in a game played on Christmas. He also treated himself to a present after the contest, as fans couldn’t help but notice he had a new hairdo when he rolled up to a postgame press conference.
The NBA has historically used Christmas Day to showcase its best teams and biggest stars, so it was only natural that Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets were going to end up on the schedule this season.
Thursday marked the sixth time Jokic has been in action on December 25th (2021 is the only time Denver hasn’t been tapped for a Christmas game since 2019). He was averaging 27.8 points in those contests heading into the most recent one, and in 2022, he became just one of 10 players who have recorded a triple-double on that particular holiday while scoring 41 points, hauling in 15 rebounds, and dishing out 15 assists.
That average now sits at 32.8 points after he joined Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook as the only players to record multiple triple-doubles on Xmas, as the Serbian superstar exploded for 56 points (the third highest on Christmas behind Bernard King’s 60 and Wilt Chamberlain’s 59) while posting 16 rebounds, 15 assists, and a couple of blocks for good measure in his team’s 142-138 overtime win over the Timberwolves.
He got the chance to reflect on the performance while chatting with the media after the game, and he did so while sporting a different haircut than the one he was rocking on the court.
Nikola Jokic got his hair cut in the locker room before speaking with the press after going off on Christmas
Jokic spent around seven minutes discussing the game at the press conference he sat down for after it wrapped up, and an astute viewer may notice his hair in the video below is slightly shorter than it is in the picture at the top of this post.
A number of fans realized that was the case and posted some before-and-after images highlighting the difference, and we were treated to some pretty solid proof that he sat down for a cut in the locker room courtesy of a clip of Peyton Watson praising his teammate’s performance while the unmistakable sound of clippers buzzed in the background.
@bleacherreport Joker was getting his hair cut in the locker room after the game and the clippers were caught on the mic 🤣💀 (Via @DNVR Sports) #nba #nbabasketball #basketball #jokic
It’s such an absurd move that you simply have to respect it.