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Three key areas of improvement for Denver Nuggets rising star Jamal Murray

By Michael Walton

DENVER, CO - MAY 12: Jamal Murray (27) of the Denver Nuggets takes a breather against the Portland Trail Blazers during the third quarter on Sunday, May 12, 2019. The Denver Nuggets versus the Portland Trail Blazers in game seven of the teams' second round NBA playoff series at the Pepsi Center in Denver. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - MAY 12: Jamal Murray (27) of the Denver Nuggets takes a breather against the Portland Trail Blazers during the third quarter on Sunday, May 12, 2019. The Denver Nuggets versus the Portland Trail Blazers in game seven of the teams' second round NBA playoff series at the Pepsi Center in Denver. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images) /
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PORTLAND, OREGON – MAY 09: Jamal Murray #27 of the Denver Nuggets (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images) (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images) /

Shot selection

Jamal Murray has played a combined 6,776 minutes over his three years in Denver, helping them maintain a top-10 offense all three seasons. The Nuggets were one of the league’s elite offenses in the 2018-19 season despite Murray quite a bit on the table in terms of efficiency. For Murray, taking his game to the next level starts with his shot selection.

The Canadian guard’s usage rate spiked from 22.8 percent from 24.9 percent this season as he and Jokic became the clear-cut engines of the offense. But despite a solid year, he chose to settle for midrange shots far more often than he should.

Per Cleaning The Glass, Murray took 35 percent of his field goal attempts from midrange in the 2017-18 season and that increased to 43 percent in the 2018-29 season. Murray is a fine midange shooter, but there is no reason he should be shooting less from 3-point range as he did in the 2018-19 season.

Murray shot 33.9 percent on pull-up 3-point shots during the 2018-19 season which is up from the 2017-18 season and on increased volume as well. The Nuggets were the best offensive rebounding team in the NBA last season and this gives even more of a reason Murray to be less shy about letting it fly from deep.

He can be streaky but even on a night where Murray takes 30 field goal attempts, he has the wherewithal and basketball-IQ to make most (if not all) of those attempts high-quality looks.

There are limitations to Murray’s game that he can’t shake. Despite possessing decent burst and athleticism, Murray’s game is finesse-based. Since Murray doesn’t have the frame or speed to barrel into the lane over and over, you will see a lot of floaters, off-balance fadeaways and underhanded scoop layups from him over the course of game.

Defenses are not going to go under screens on Murray often, which limits the ease of which he can get to his 3-point shot off of the pick-and-roll or dribble handoffs. Whether it is developing a Chris Paul-esque ability to back into his man and draw a foul while in a shooting motion (from the 3-point line), or using a snake dribble/stepback combination to get a clean 3-point shot, Murray needs to find a way to do less work from the least efficient spots on the floor.

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