Jokic has been either the best or second-best player in the sport for three straight years — and he has done much of that in relative peace and quiet.
He was a name in the newspaper, or maybe the cover of Sports Illustrated. He had a terrific nickname — “The Great One” says it all, after all — and he had already begun piling up numbers and records that almost read like fiction.
The legend of Wayne Gretzky was a word-of-mouth deal, even as late as 1983, when the Oilers qualified for their first Stanley Cup finals, against the Islanders. True-blue New York hockey fans relished the three or four times a year Gretzky played at Madison Square Garden or Nassau Coliseum, before he disappeared into the ether.
Jokic certainly must be hoping his first taste of the national glare goes better than Gretzky’s did. Gretzky scored zero goals as his Oilers were swept by the dynasty Islanders in 1983. He got plenty of opportunities to rectify that. So should Jokic, who will be an NBA force for years to come — even if his days as a top-secret sleeper weapon are officially coming to an end.
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