/ STAFF WRITER
LOS ANGELES – The two big men never formally crossed paths, but they nearly took the same journey.
Lakers center Ivica Zubac played for Mega Leks in the Basketball League of Serbia two years after Nuggets center Nikola Jokic did. While the two have vague memories of squaring up against each other in European tournaments, Jokic distinctly remembers his coach, Dejan Milojevic, repeatedly praising Zubac’s growth.
Since then, Jokic has witnessed it during Zubac’s rookie season in the NBA. Though Jokic sat out with a left hip flexor strain when the Lakers played the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday at Staples Center, the 6-foot-10 Serbian center played against Zubac earlier this month.