Every Denver Nuggets fan knows that the team wouldn't have won its first championship in 2023 without Jamal Murray. He was unbelievable -- averaging 26.1 points and 7.1 assists, shooting 47.3% from the field and 39.6% from three.
Murray didn't look like the same player in the 2024 playoffs, averaging 20.6 points and 5.6 assists, shooting 40.2% from the field and 31.5% from deep. He strained his calf in Game 4 of the first round, but still managed to hit (another) big shot to send the Lakers home. The point guard was inconsistent in the semifinals against the Timberwolves, with his point total ranging from eight to 35.
He became eligible to sign an extension in September, with many wondering if he deserved the max. Denver gave it to him anyway, as he signed a four-year, $208.5 million deal that runs through the 2028-29 season.
Murray started the 2024-25 season off cold, but in true Jamal fashion, he's since come alive. He's averaged 22.9 points and 5.8 assists per game since Jan. 1, shooting 49.9% from the field and 42.3% from three. The question with Murray has never been about whether he can score, but more so about the version of him that'll show up.
Nuggets need the current version of Jamal Murray in the playoffs
Everyone knows that Nikola Jokic is Denver's best player. Heck, he's the best player in the NBA. Nobody knew it then, but he single-handedly changed the Nuggets' trajectory when he was drafted during a Taco Bell commercial. Jokic is one of one.
You can say that Murray is Denver's most important player. The Nuggets are hard to beat when he's engaged and knocking down shots. He dropped 39 points in a 116-111 road win over the Rockets on Sunday with Jokic sidelined.
People questioned over the summer what Denver would look like in 2024-25, especially after losing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in free agency (who hasn't looked anything like the player he was with the Nuggets). The skeptics prematurely wrote Murray off, saying he could no longer be the player he was during the 2023 title run. He's proven that wrong over the last couple of months.
Surprise, surprise -- the Nuggets are contenders. Any team that Jokic plays for should never be ruled out. Factor the recent version of Murray into the equation, and Denver has a good chance to win its second title in three years.
Murray isn't going to drop 39 every game in the playoffs (but wouldn't that be nice?), but the game completely changes for the Nuggets when he's playing at a star-level. And wouldn't you know? There's proof he can sustain it, too. Playoff Murray is real.