History books will show the Denver Nuggets are the 2023 NBA champions. Let there be no doubt about that.

But what about the Nuggets’ Rocky Mountain-sized center, Nikola Jokic? What will his place be on the all-time list of great centers?

Still just 28, the 6-foot-11, 284-pound native Serbian has many years — perhaps even another decade — to further polish his résumé.

Already he has two MVP Awards, an MVP runner-up (this season to Joel Embiid) and his first NBA crown, although more could follow.

“The Joker” is coming off a scintillating season in which he averaged 24.5 points, 11.9 rebounds and 9.8 assists. In so doing, he coined the name of a new position — “point center” — for his sleight-of-hand passing on the perimeter.

But comparing the former second round draft choice to the legends is dicey at best.

For starters, the statistics accompanying this article are mostly about offense. Jokic is not a great leaper and not considered a fearsome shot blocker. Still, his bulk makes him hard to get around.

It’s hard making generational comparisons. Blocked shots weren’t even kept during the George Mikan, Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell years, and the 3-point shot wasn’t added by the NBA until 1979. The game has evolved.

Jokic is as much a threat from a distance (38.3 percent) as he is from close in.

So, who deserves to be called the top big man of all time? Mikan was considered “the first big man,” when he came out of DePaul at 6-foot-10 and overwhelmed the league with the Minneapolis (later Los Angels) Lakers.

Russell won the most titles, by far, but in a much smaller league (just eight teams in 1960) and while surrounded by other Hall of Fame Celtics.

Chamberlain was truly a colossus at a muscular 7-foot-1, averaging 50 points per game in 1962.

Then there was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who dominated the college game at UCLA (under the name Lew Alcindor) and ultimately won six MVP trophies while scoring an all- time record 38,387 points.

Artis Gilmore, like Moses Malone, came from the old ABA to become a powerful NBA figure. Gilmore stands about 7-foot-3 and towered even higher with one of the NBA’s all-time Afros.

What if Bill Walton had never been injured? “The Grateful Red” was on a path to the summit when chronic foot problems dulled his skills.

Shaquille O’Neal may have been even more physically dominant than Chamberlain at nearly 300 pounds.

Hakeem Olajuwon, the “Nigerian Nightmare,” is likely the all-time defender with 3,830 blocked shots.

And how about Malone, who came out of Petersburg High with no college experience to become a three-time MVP and 12-time all-star.

Pat Ewing was the pride of the Big Apple, earning 11 All-Star rings with the New York Knicks.

The “Admiral,” David Robinson was a 10-time All-Star and one-time MVP who kept San Antonio near the top of league for 14 seasons.

Not mentioned here is 6-foot-11 Giannis Antetokounmpo. The “Greek Freak” is too much of a perimeter player, as much a guard as a center. Also not mentioned is former Virginia Union sensation Ben Wallace, who later starred with Detroit.

Wallace was elected to the Naismith Hall of Fame, but his career averages of 5.7 points, 9.6 boards, 1.3 assists and 41.4 percent foul shooting doesn’t make “the greatest” cut.

Going head-to-head in the same era with Jokic is Embiid, who was runner-up MVP in 2021 and 2022 before taking top honors this go-round.

There is no easy answer to is “the greatest.” It depends on what you’re looking for, and from what generation.

Jokic, in time, might deserve the highest honors. But there’s no reason to rush judgment — check back about 2033.

And by then there may be another contender. French teenager Victor Wembanyama, aka “Wemby,” is coming soon to an NBA arena near you.