DENVER — As NBA Commissioner Adam Silver handed Nikola Jokic his third MVP trophy, the Denver Nuggets center contorted his face into a barely perceptible grin for a photo op he probably would have preferred to skip. Jokic clutched the bronze statue while recognizing the Ball Arena crowd’s thunderous response, then set about manipulating the Minnesota Timberwolves’ front line as if it were another powerless object that could fit in his palms.