LOS ANGELES — Not even history can break routine.
Nikola Jokic had just shredded the Los Angeles Lakers in tidy fashion en route to the Denver Nuggets’ first-ever trip to the NBA Finals. He’d played 45 minutes, 16 seconds, of sublime, scintillating basketball, including all 24 minutes of the second half.
He’d bullied Anthony Davis for his third triple-double in four games and set an NBA playoff record with his eighth triple-double of the postseason. His 30-point, 14-rebound, 13-assist, three-block masterpiece carried the Nuggets further than this franchise had ever been, earning him MVP of the Western Conference finals.
