Despite the court of public opinion deciding that the Nuggets are in over their heads, their first-round playoff series with the Clippers is tied 2-2. For the most part, Denver’s success has been chalked up to the incredible play of Nikola Jokic, and rightfully so.
Jokic has been absolutely incredible, boasting a 28.5 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 10.75 assists per game stat line through four games. On top of that, he’s been lights out in the clutch and has played almost every minute of the series, at times propping up players who don’t look like they belong on an NBA court.
But quietly, and without the gaudy stats and fanfare, Jamal Murray has been almost as important to the team’s success in a different way. He’s the Nuggets’ only player who can actively dribble, shoot, and create offense. This is amplified even further with Russell Westbrook out of the lineup, but the team has been a disaster when Murray sits.
To add some context, the Nuggets’ offensive rating in the regular season was 118.9, and in the playoffs it’s 106.1. In this series, when Jokic is off the floor, that rating falls to 59.3, and when Murray sits, it’s at 49.1. Perhaps even more jarring is when Jokic is on the floor, but Murray is off, and the rating is just 65.7. For some perspective, the Wizards had the worst offensive rating in the NBA this season at 105.8.
It’s extremely evident how bad this team needs Murray, and needs him to play as many minutes as possible. But therein lies the problem.
Murray’s defense has been a major liability
Combine Murray’s small frame, his ankle injury, fatigue from his offensive workload, and his already less-than-stellar defense, and things have been rough on that end. The Clippers are targeting Murray, and he hasn’t been able to hold up at all.
When the Clippers’ best players hunt for matchups, it’s Murray they’re seeking out, and seemingly scoring at will. When Kawhi gets Jamal on him, it’s an automatic basket. He has shown no ability to keep Harden or Powell in front of him. And he doesn’t have the size to hold up against anyone else.
The Nuggets have been able to “hide” Jamal on Kris Dunn, but Ty Lue and his staff seemed to finally crack that code at the end of Game 4, realizing Dunn’s offense was killing them. When the Clippers went with Bogdanovich over Dunn down the stretch, there was nowhere to hide and nobody to cheat off of. The result was a 30-9 run for LA in the span of about 7 minutes.
The Nuggets certainly aren’t going to take Murray off the floor as he’s obviously far too vital to their offense. But with MPJ and Jokic also on the floor, there just aren’t enough good defenders on the floor to cover up for Murray’s shortcomings.
If the Clippers learn from the end of Game 4 and start attacking Murray for 48 minutes, it may be the Nuggets’ undoing, and there’s very little they can do about it.