NC State’s DJ Burns Jr. has a fan in Nikola Jokic and it kept the former MVP from arriving at his postgame press conference on time.
The Nuggets star praised the play of Burns when he met the media on Sunday after putting up 26 points, 18 rebounds and 16 assists in a 130-101 Nuggets win over the Cavaliers.
Jokic may not be a college basketball fan, but he took some time to watch NC State upset Duke and advance to the Final Four, thanks in part to the play of Burns.
“They were not supposed to make the Tournament, right?” Jokic asked about NC State, according to The Denver Post.
But the impressed Jokic went on to praise Burns in particular, who put up 29 points in the win.
“I think he’s so skilled, especially lefty. I’d love to be lefty,” Jokic said. “And it seems like players, teammates like to play with him. So, gotta be a good guy.”
The Wolfpack have been the Cinderella story of the NCAA Tournament after NC State had to win five straight games in the ACC Tournament just to earn one of the automatic bids.
NC State’s run of nine straight victories has been an impressive one, with the Wolfpack stringing together wins over Texas Tech, Oakland, No. 2-seed Marquette and No. 4-seed Duke in the NCAA Tournament.
Their trip to the Elite Eight is just the program’s fourth ever and first since 1983.
Burns had started his collegiate basketball career at Tennessee and transferred to Winthrop after his freshman year, and he spent three seasons at Winthrop before transferring to NC State.
He’ll face another tall center in the Final Four when NC State takes on Purdue and 7-foot-4 Zach Edey.
