THE Denver Nuggets and Nikola Jokic have continued where they left off last week. On Thursday night, into the early hours of this morning British Summer Time, the National Basketball Association finals got under way in Denver, Colorado.

In their 47th season in the NBA — one of the US’s so-called “Big Four” sports leagues along with the NFL (American football), MLB (baseball) and NHL (ice hockey) — the Nuggets are appearing in their first-ever finals.

They face the Miami Heat, who won the Eastern Conference finals after the best-of-seven series against the Boston Celtics went all the way to the last game despite them having taken a 3-0 series lead.

There was no such struggle for the Nuggets, who have only lost three games in three playoff best-of-seven series, winning the Western Conference finals 4-0 against the LA Lakers.

Even though that series with the Lakers was a 4-0 whitewash, it was still an engaging watch and the perfect lay-up for the Nuggets heading into the finals.

The Lakers team featured a 38-year-old LeBron James trying his best to sprinkle enough star power on the occasion to give the Lakers a chance, but it was to be a series dominated by the presence of Jokic and the scoring of Jamal Murray.

Jokic, 28, is dominant in part because of his size — 6ft 11in, 284lb — but it doesn’t define his game which is as much about skill, court vision and dominance in a technical sense as it is about physicality.

This is demonstrated by the fact he has been registering triple-doubles for fun in these playoffs, regularly reaching double figures in three statistical areas of the game — points, rebounds and assists.

Earlier in the playoffs he became the first player in NBA history with four consecutive 20-point triple-doubles in the post-season.

Then, in a 104-93 victory in game one against the Heat on Thursday night, Jokic became only the second player to record a triple-double in a finals debut, joining Jason Kidd who managed the feat for the New Jersey Nets in 2001.

Jokic now has nine of the 12 triple-doubles registered in these playoffs.

The narrative’s head-to-head for this game was between Jokic and the Heat’s star player Jimmy Butler, but Bam Adebayo was tasked with the probably impossible job of stopping Jokic in the actual head-to-head on the court.

Some close attention in the first quarter meant Jokic wasn’t often in a shooting position, but by the end of that first period, he had already registered six assists as Denver took a 29-20 lead.

Any worries about the Nuggets having too much time between winning the conference finals and beginning the NBA finals series were quickly allayed.

Adebayo himself performed admirably at the other end, ending the game with 26 points, second only to Jokic’s 27, but the Serbian’s dominance in other areas, especially his creativity, is what separates him from the rest.

To watch the Nuggets is to watch Jokic striding between the baskets with ideas and purpose, picking up defensive rebounds before going on to orchestrate attacks.

Whether that be by occupying the minds of defenders to create space for others, using inventiveness in his inventory to find them in that space, or by scoring himself, his all-round game makes him difficult to stop.

Jokic’s speed comes via quickness of thought, passing, and releasing the ball. He's always a step ahead, often finding a way around, through or over even the most attentive, disciplined defence.

“He sees plays before they happen,” said LeBron James after the Nuggets versus Lakers series.

“Even when you guard him for one of the best possessions you think you can guard him, he puts the ball behind his head, Larry Bird style, and shoots it 50 feet in the air and it goes in.”

One of the greatest players of all time, Earvin ‘Magic’ Johnson, said Jokic is “changing the face of basketball right before our very eyes.”

No player touched the ball more than Jokic during the regular season, while his 678 assists were the second-most by a centre in NBA history behind Wilt Chamberlain’s 702 in the 1967-68 season.

This ubiquitous basketball has continued into the playoffs. At this rate the player nicknamed the Joker will be smiling at the end of the NBA finals as its MVP and outstanding player.

But Jokic’s effort is a team one, as indicated by all those assists.

He was once again supported in game one of the finals by Murray who himself ended the opener against Miami with 26 points and 10 assists. 

The pair combined give the Nuggets a great chance of turning their first-ever finals appearance into a first NBA championship.