​Going through a pregame warm-up drill, Nikola Topic is sadly all too familiar with this song and dance. For the third straight year of his NBA career, the 21-year-old has been sidelined. The Oklahoma City Thunder have seen very little of their 2024 NBA draft lottery pick. And time is running out to make an impression.Likely under a lot of stress and anxiety over his uncertain NBA future, Nikola Jokic went to dinner with him before the Thunder collected a 96-84 win over the Denver Nuggets in their 2026-27 regular season home opener.”I played with him on the national team. He’s a young guy. A talented guy who’s going through and fighting through a lot. I think he has the talent,” Jokic said about Topic. “Probably needs help in some way, just because he’s going through a lot. Maybe it’s company, maybe it’s friendship, maybe it’s dinner. But I think he’s going to be good.”Even for injury-prone NBA players, Topic has received the absolute worst luck. He missed the entire 2024-25 season with a torn ACL. OK. That was known at the time when OKC added him with the No. 12 pick. But then, before he could suit up for the 2025-26 season, he had a scary, life-altering diagnosis that went beyond the court.Topic was diagnosed with testicular cancer in Oct. 2025. There’s only one other case in NBA history of an active player dealing with a similar illness, with Nene in 2008. Obviously, the Thunder put basketball on the back burner as he went through several rounds of chemotherapy.Eventually, Topic was cleared. He made his NBA debut right before the All-Star break in Feb. 2025. He has 10 games under his belt. But now, he went through another setback. He underwent back surgery this past offseason. And it looks like he’s still recovering from that. At least, in terms of getting into game shape.Topic was limited throughout the NBA training camp. Now, he’s missed OKC’s first two games of the 2026-27 regular season. But participating in pregame warmups before their home-opening win over the Nuggets is a positive step in the right direction. I think he’ll be back sooner rather than later.With the Nuggets in town, he linked up with Jokic. Both Serbians are part of an exclusive club of NBA players. So there are obvious ties there. The three-time MVP winner talked about the 21-year-old and his difficult journey filled with obstacles.”When something happens, you’re not alone. No matter what. If it’s injuries, you’re going to have somebody else or a trainer with you. He knows what he’s going through. His family is with him and everything.”Nikola Jokic spoke about his friendship with his Serbian national team teammate Nikola Topić and seeing his return to the floor. pic.twitter.com/xdaBBcaN3w— Jordan Davis (@thejordancdavis) October 23, 2026This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: How Nikola Jokic is taking this OKC Thunder player under his wing in mentorship role