Jamal Murray has proven throughout his career that he shows up when it matters most, but the NBA schedule release does the Denver Nuggets' point guard no favors when it comes to the thing that he has most often been criticized for. Murray is one of the biggest playoff risers in NBA history, but he is well known for his slow starts. These early-season blunders have prevented Murray from ever making the All-Star Game.
Nuggets fans have grown to live with the fact that Murray is one of the best players in league history without an All-Star appearance to his name, but All-Star recognition would still be something nice to look back at on Murray's resume when it is all said and done. The stars were aligning for Murray to finally make the game that features the best players in the NBA this upcoming season, but an All-Star nod seems more likely to elude the Kentucky product yet again now that the Nuggets' schedule has been announced.
Murray has grown pretty consistent in the fact that it takes him a while to get his feet under him before he becomes an All-NBA caliber player leading into and during the postseason. This year, the Nuggets have a tough schedule to start the season, which may only compound the likelihood that Murray doesn't impress right away and, therefore, misses the All-Star Game yet again.
Nuggets' early-season schedule
Having a tough schedule comes with the territory of being a Western Conference team. The conference as a whole is stacked with championship-contending teams and young, up-and-coming rosters. The Nuggets might have it worse than their Western Conference peers when it comes to the opponents that they will face during the first two months of the season. In October, Denver will take on the Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans, and Portland Trail Blazers.
Only the Warriors and Timberwolves of that group made the playoffs last season. However, the Suns, Pelicans, and Trail Blazers were all active in the offseason and could improve on their records from last season. Not to mention, the Timberwolves have kind of owned the Nuggets over the last two seasons. In fact, after besting Denver in the second round of the 2024 playoffs, Minnesota won every matchup against the Nuggets last season.
Things only get harder in November. Seven of the fourteen teams that Denver will face during the second month of the season made the playoffs last year, and none of the other matchups will be cake walks for the Nuggets. Notably, the San Antonio Spurs will be much improved, and the Sacramento Kings, whom the Nuggets face three times in November, aren't easy outs in the regular season.
How is Jamal Murray affected by the Nuggets' schedule?
At the end of the day, Murray could be in for a great season. The Nuggets had an incredible offseason and are in the best position to reach the NBA Finals again since they were crowned champions in 2023. Michael Porter Jr. was traded for Cam Johnson, the Nuggets flipped Dario Saric for Jonas Valanciunas, and Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. were great free agent additions.
The newfound depth will help Denver both late in the season season and as the NBA calendar kicks off, but the tough early-season schedule seems likely to once again limit Murray's success early on. The guard has all of the talent in the world, but he just isn't an 82-game star.
The talent Denver will face early, especially when it comes to teams with great defenses, will likely limit Murray enough that he yet again misses the All-Star Game. A championship is what matters for the Nuggets, though, and that could very well come at season's end.