Renck: Nuggets gave Nikola Jokic everything he needs. Now watch him cement his legacy.

David Adelman is a wizard on the whiteboard In charge of the Nuggets offense since Adelman creates transition buckets and motion to exploit opponents But at its core Denver s foundation is simple If you are on our crew and you play selfishly it sure as heck shows up Adelman reported last week We move the ball and play the right way It is if we are being honest the Jokic Way Therein lies the secret of what could be a milestone year for Nikola Jokic He should win his fourth MVP award but nothing would cement his legacy like a second championship For the first time since the Nuggets have aligned the pieces to his liking Jokic bemoaned the organization s lack of depth after Oklahoma City eliminated the Nuggets in the Western Conference semifinals the squad s second straight early exit and co-general managers Jon Wallace and Ben Tenzer got the message The outcome was a makeover worthy of HGTV Michael Porter Jr was traded for the more versatile and less expensive Cam Johnson They added an actual functional backup center in Jonas Valanciunas via another commerce and signed free agents Tim Hardaway Jr and Bruce Brown at bargain basement prices The product This group no wait this organization has been refashioned in Jokic s image No drama All ball The paranoia and pettiness between coach and general manager can no longer infect the locker room with Michael Malone and Calvin Booth long since fired The overreliance on prospects to build out the bench is also a thing of the past It is easy to translate the message Wallace and Tenzer received from band president Josh Kroenke Win now while Jokic remains in his prime The Nuggets recognized it was time to stop making excuses about untenable contracts and time to start adding the right veterans to reinforce the unit s beliefs So it comes back to Jokic The Nuggets cannot take his happiness for granted anymore So they ve given him everything he demands Now all the Nuggets need is for him to produce another historic season He must not only deliver nightly triple-doubles but also assert his leadership on a regular basis This isn t Jeff Bridich asking Nolan Arenado to start waving pom-poms to camouflage the organization s horrible pitching This is the Nuggets creating an milieu that brings out the best in Jokic on and off the floor leaving him calm investing like he did with Serbia during the Paris Olympics The expectation is through games that he is more vocal But is a lot It s those moments when things get tough I d like to see Jamal Murray Nikola Aaron Gordon the guys who have been here and through the wars in basketball terms speak up in film sessions and timeouts Adelman revealed I don t think you will see it every night Everybody has to take a step in that direction You are a year older a year smarter Use your leadership the best that you can Because of his established greatness seeing differences in Jokic is nuanced But teammates have taken notice And they love this version of Joker That is the message from ownership on down for us to take control and take ownership And having Joker be vocal having Jamal be vocal having our marquee guys really lead not only by example but also verbally is huge I think it s helped everybody out And it s made the other guys more serious about it forward Peyton Watson explained When you have new guys coming in and they see Jokic talking and playing hard and running the floor and beating everyone down the floor on a fast break when you see Joker doing that you look yourself in the mirror and ask Why can t I do that ' There is no reason Jokic sets the standard for everything starting with the Nuggets style of play He plays a beautiful challenge his spatial awareness stunning He recognizes players are open before they do Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets warms up before the first quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on Sunday May Photo by AAron Ontiveroz The Denver Post Related Articles Renck vs Keeler Where does Broncos comeback win rank in Denver sports history Renck When it mattered greater part Broncos presented heart providing fitting tribute to DT Super Bowl unit Renck Broncos defense giving off vibes for Von Miller Wade Phillips But they re not there yet Renck File Giants Jaxson Dart is having fun He won t be showing joy vs Broncos on Sunday Renck Nuggets Christian Braun is not Kentavious Caldwell-Pope He s better Now he has extra parts around him to amplify his strengths Johnson could be the next Gordon his numbers shrinking while his ego-free play enhances the group Hardaway will never get more open s than this season And Brown might have paid to play alongside Joker if the players union let him The more guys who get Jokic the better That was not the affair last season when we witnessed Jokic boil over in frustration on multiple occasions It s not easy not easy going against him He makes me step up and bring my A match every day Sometimes I am not feeling as well don t want to go as hard He keeps me percent stated Valanciunas who should lighten Jokic s minutes load this season I don t know how to express how good he is his passes After ignoring signs of dysfunction for too long the Nuggets fixed things around their centerpiece For Jokic it is never about his floor vision It is the way he sees everything He is a basketball savant And if this season goes as expected it will be clear why he is one of the greatest players ever Want more Nuggets news Sign up for the Nuggets Insider to get all our NBA analysis