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Oklahoma City Thunder guard and No. 12 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft Nikola Topic made his NBA debut after overcoming a knee injury and testicular cancer.
Subject Nikola from OKC Thunder (AFP)
After a year and a half of waiting to make his NBA debut, Nikola Topic was surely patient enough to wait until the final minutes of the first quarter on Thursday.
The Oklahoma City Thunder guard came off the bench Thursday night against the Milwaukee Bucks and headed to the scorer’s table.
The arena was buzzing. One whistle, one dead ball and his long road back finally came to an end – a long and winding road that included a serious knee injury, then the most unexpected obstacle: a battle with testicular cancer.
So when he finally checked in Thursday at the end of the first quarter, the ovation inside “Loud City” hit differently.
What a moment in OKC 🙌2024 NBA Draft No. 12 pick Nikola Topić makes his NBA debut after battling cancer and records an assist on his first possession 👏 pic.twitter.com/MsnJ68ATJ4
– Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) February 13, 2026
The fans stood and continued to applaud as Topic crossed half court and delivered an early assist to Jaylin Williams.
Moments later, he scored his first NBA points – a fluid mid-range takedown from the pick-and-roll with new All-Star Chet Holmgren.
He replaced with two points, an assist and a rebound.
A modest stat line. An important step.
The subject’s journey on the NBA court
For most of the last year and a half, Topic’s life in the NBA has gone quietly.
The Serbian guard, selected 12th overall in the 2024 draft, arrived in Oklahoma City already recovering from a serious knee injury suffered before draft night.
While his teammates completed the best season in franchise history by winning the highly anticipated Larry O’Brien Trophy, Topic focused on recovery.
By the summer of 2025, he was back on the field. Topic impressed during the Las Vegas Summer League, posting the event’s best assists per game mark, and looked sharp in a preseason outing against Charlotte.
Then another blow. In October 2025, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer.
He underwent surgery, started chemotherapy shortly after and worked with specialists.
Updates were rare. The work was not. Videos have surfaced of lone jumpers in quiet gyms.
And on Thursday night, all the hard work finally paid off.
February 13, 2026, 11:33 AM IST
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