Nikola Jokic is now the undisputed best basketball player in the world
There have always been stars who have transformed basketball, even forcing the rules to be updated to reduce their unchallenged dominance. Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, and even Steph Curry in recent times are examples of that.
The latter, with his Golden State Warriors team, introduced the idea of playing behind the arc, of moving away from the hoop, of surrounding himself with three-point shooters. For many years, small-ball basketball has dominated the NBA to the point of talking about centres as an endangered species.
But there have been those who have stood up to this by introducing improvements in their game and updating their style to modern times. The regular season MVP was 76ers centre Joel Embiid after all.
And the Finals MVP went to Nikola Jokic. From his refuge in the Rocky Mountains, from the 41st pick in the 2014 draft, the Serbian with a unique body type has become in less than a decade: the best player on the planet.
Jokic plays in the Matrix
With Jokic, there is no need to choose between the blue or red pill. Jokic plays in the Matrix - at a different speed from everyone else. Or rather, he makes everyone else, teammates and opponents alike, seem to move slower in his world. He, meanwhile, waits for the moment to decide with that innate talent what to do, where to move the ball, and how to cause havoc to his opponents.
He is a centre because he is big: 2.11 metres to be precise. But in reality, he is the centre of the Nuggets' game. He needs to be surrounded by teammates who understand him, who cut the zone, who shoot well, and who have a good reading of the game. From there, he makes things easier for them; he makes them better. And if his teammates aren't in the game, then he will do it himself and score the points singlehandedly.
Against the Heat, he averaged 30.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, 8 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1 steal in the five games it took him to win his first ring. Simply unstoppable and uncontested. There is no one like him.