Nikola Maric began his career in the world of basketball at KK Leotar Trebinje. Later, he played two seasons in the lower categories of Joventut de Badalona (cadet and junior), before signing for Baloncesto Fuenlabrada, where he competed with the junior team and the reserve team in the EBA League. Later, he joined the MoraBanc Andorra reserve team for two seasons and made his debut in the ACB League in the 2016/2017 season, in a game against Valencia Basket.
He spent his university years in the United States, where he played four seasons with the Little Rock Trojans. In his final university season, he averaged 13.3 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, with 67% free throws and 53% field goal shooting. In his last season before joining Bàsquet Girona, with Igokea m:tel, he played 28 games in the league, averaging 8.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per game, with 70% free throws and 67.7% field goal attempts, playing 15.9 minutes per game. In the playoffs, he increased his performance, reaching 9.3 points and 5.8 rebounds in 14.8 minutes per game in a total of 4 games. He also participated in the Basketball Champions League (BCL), where he recorded 4.3 points and 2.7 rebounds in 11.2 minutes on average in the 6 games played.