While Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokić appear to be opposites, a weird phenomenon has been observed throughout the playoffs for the Denver Nuggets.Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE/Getty

Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray has always said he was born to shoot big. Murray did snow pushups and ice basketball workouts in Kitchener, Ontario, before his big break. Murray, the seventh selection of the 2016 draft, was cleared to shoot by Nuggets coach Mike Malone. Perhaps it was free permission. Murray rewarded his team’s confidence with explosive scoring and frequent misses. At first, he struggled from three-point range and often took challenging two-point shots, the most inefficient method to score. He was tenacious and imaginative, breаking screens, improving his ball-handling, and perfecting small passes. Naturally, he kept shooting.

Good thing Murray didn’t have to carry the team. He didn’t need to carry the ball up the floor as a point guard. Nikola Jokić, the Nuggets’ center, was a youthful ball-handling sensation with the ability to distribute the ball better than any other big man in history. The Nuggets had obvious shortcomings and were inconsistent, like Murray. However, Jokić and Murray developed a rapport. They were rare young studs who could run the pick-and-roll both ways. In the regular season, Jokić provided Murray with a total of 119 assists, ranking third in the NBA (PBPstats.com). Murray fed Jokić 116, ranking ninth. No other duo came close to their total. They established a rhythm and relative position.

Following a 3–1 loss to the Utah Jazz in the first round of the playoffs, Murray and Jokić may have been surprised by the outcome on Thursday night. Murray drove low to the ground with a push-ahead dribble, barely controlling the ball, directly toward LeBron James in Game Four of the Western Conference Finals. James leapt, right arm extended, a rising wall, as Murray reached the rim. Murray turned to his left midair and swung the ball under and behind James, finishing the layup with his right hand as he fell. James was drawn to the exact replica of Michael Jordan’s most famous shot. With five minutes left and the Lakers leading by four, James asked to switch onto Murray, who had scored twenty-eight points on twelve-for-seventeen shooting. James held Murray without a field goal for the rest of the game, and the Lakers won 114–108 to lead the series 3–1. This advantage is scary. If the Nuggets return, no one will be surprised.

Murray’s dancing partner, Jokić, is unique in the N.B.A. in appearance, play, and behavior. He’s a seven-foot center and point guard who can dunk and get a triple-double. His jump shot requires little jumping. Jokić, from Sombor, Serbia, maintains his horses. (He loves harness racing.) He has a henchman’s face, an elastic smile, and long limbs for his size. Although he’s a large man, he lacks the weight-room armor of Dwight Howard or LeBron James. He sometimes seems gelatinous—more enormous squid than great white shark.