In hopes of playing college basketball and reaching the NBA, Nikola Vucevic moved to Simi Valley, California in October of 2007. He moved to California to play his senior year at an American high school. Vucevic plate for Stoneridge Prep. He averaged 18 points and 12 rebounds per game in his only year at the school. At the time he knew very little English, but he was fluent in French which many of his teammates were able to speak. 

After his one season at an American high school, Vucevic went on to play for the University of Southern California Trojans. He played three seasons for the Trojans. Vucevic’s college career did not start as he planned, as he was forced to miss the first eight games of the year while awaiting his status to be confirmed by the NCAA clearinghouse. After being deemed eligible, Vucevic went on to average 2.6 points and 2.7 rebounds in 23 games during his freshman year. 

During his sophomore year, Vucevic began to show promise. In his first game of the season, he tallied 18 points and eight rebounds against UC Riverside on November 17, 2009. He had a much better year while averaging 10.7 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. He also led the Pac-10 with 283 rebounds. Subsequently, he was named the Pac-10 Most Improved Player. After showing more improvement in his junior year, Vucevic was named to the All-Pac-10 First Team. Following his junior year, Vucevic declared for the 2011 NBA Draft.

Nikola Vucevic was selected 16th overall in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers on June 23, 2011. Vucevic was drafted during the NBA lockout year, but this did not stop him from playing basketball. While awaiting his return to the NBA, Vucevic played for Montenegrin team Buducnost Podgorica. Following the end of the lockout, Vucevic returned to the Philadelphia 76ers. The best game of his rookie campaign came with an 18 point outing against the Houston Rockets. 

After one year with the 76ers, Vucevic was traded to the Orlando Magic. On August 10, 2012, the Magic obtained Nikola Vucevic in a four-team trade involving Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum, Aaron Afflalo, Andre Iguodala, and more. Vucevic began to show an instant impact for the Magic. On December 31, 2012, Vucevic set an Orlando Magic record with 29 rebounds against the Miami Heat. In the following season, 2013-14, Vucevic continued to expand his game. On November 6, 2013, he tallied 30 points and 21 rebounds against the Los Angeles Clippers. At the end of the 2013-14 season, he had already recorded six 20 point and 20 rebound games in his career. 

In the 2014-15 season, the Magic extended Vucevic with a four-year $53 million contract. He immediately showed his worth by posting 37 points against the Minnesota Timberwolves on April 3, 2015. Over the following seasons, Vucevic continued to improve. He was slowly becoming an NBA superstar. On April 10, 2017, he passed Shaquille O’Neal for second place in Orlando Magic history for rebounding. 

On October 20, 2017, Vucevic tallied a career-high 41 points while also grabbing 12 rebounds against the Brooklyn Nets. Later in the year, he became the first Orlando Magic center to record a triple-double with assists. Vucevic recorded a second triple-double on October 20, 2018. In this 2018-19 season, Vucevic helped the Magic reach their first playoffs since 2012. They lost in the first round to the Toronto Raptors. In 2019, Vucevic reached his first NBA All-Star team. The Orlando Magic re-signed the unrestricted free agent on June 30, 2019, to a four-year, $100 million deal.