Jamal Murray

Nuggets Notes: Game 7, Jokic, Murray, Braun, Offseason

May 20th, 2024 at 3:12pm CST by Rory Maher

The defending-champion Nuggets were eliminated from the postseason in extraordinary fashion by the Timberwolves in Sunday night’s Game 7, blowing a 20-point third-quarter lead at home, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. According to Youngmisuk, it was the largest Game 7 blown lead in the past 25 years.

Perhaps all the more stunning is the fact that Denver is known for having one of the best home court advantages in the league, going 33-8 in the regular season and only dropping one playoff home game during its championship campaign in 2022/23. In the first round, the Nuggets went 3-0 vs. the Lakers at home. Yet in the semifinal, they dropped three of four to Minnesota.

As Bennett Durando of The Denver Post writes, Nikola Jokic (34 points, 19 rebounds, seven assists) put up his typical huge numbers. However, the reigning Finals MVP and three-time MVP noticeably ran out of gas as the game progressed, settling for jumpers in the second half and going 13-of-28 from the floor overall, including 2-of-10 on threes (he made 6-of-7 from the line). The Serbian star rested for a total of just 84 seconds, all of which came in the first half.

Jokic was humble in defeat, praising the Wolves and specifically their roster construction. Minnesota’s front office is led by Tim Connelly, who drafted Jokic to Denver before getting a raise from the Wolves a couple years ago.

“I mean, I think they’re built to beat us,” Jokic said, per Youngmisuk. “Just look at their roster. They have basically two All-Stars (Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns), two probably first-team defensive players (Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels). Mike Conley is the most underrated player in the NBA, probably.

“From the bench, they have a Sixth Man of the Year (Naz Reid). … (They are) one team that they can do literally everything. They can be big, small.”

Here’s more on the Nuggets:

Jamal Murray, who was instrumental in last year’s Finals run but has been battling a calf strain, scored his 29th point just over a minute into the second half before adding just six the rest of the way. He finished with a game-high 35 points on a very similar line to Jokic (13-of-27, 4-of-12 on threes, 5-of-5 on free throws). Murray viewed the series differently than Jokic, believing the Nuggets were the superior team, but trying to repeat as champions took its toll. “Just mentally and physically, conjuring up the energy to fight like you’re being hunted,” Murray said. “I think that’s the emotion. When you’re the hunter, you have so much more motivation and you grasp on to anything to prove everybody wrong and you have a constant chip on your shoulder. I don’t know. … I feel like we should have won tonight. That’s the tough part. They beat us, but we had so many great opportunities, including myself, so it’s just tough, man.”
Second-year wing Christian Braun concurred with Murray’s assessment and said he definitely views the Wolves as a rival now after eliminating a shorthanded Minnesota in last year’s playoffs. “It sucks,” Braun said. according to Durando, “because I think we’re the better team. … I don’t like them. I think that we need more of that in the NBA. They’re a really good team. Really well-coached. Really good players. It’s a matchup that you love to play in. You don’t want to play, like, really friendly with a bunch of teams. I think it’s a really good rivalry for the NBA. I would say it is a rivalry. And that’s why this hurts more.”
While Jokic and Murray took responsibility, they combined to score 69 points, compared to 21 points on 8-of-28 shooting for the rest of the team, notes Youngmisuk. And the starting lineup, which has consistently been one of the best in the league the past two seasons, was minus-60 overall, per Durando.
ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Insider link), HoopsHype’s Mark Deeks, and cap expert Yossi Gozlan (YouTube link) preview Denver’s offseason and future salary cap situation, respectively. Starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, one of the team’s top defenders who shot 41.6% from deep in his two regular seasons with the Nuggets, could be their top free agent — he holds a $15.4MM player option and would likely get a raise on the open market. The Nuggets have one of the league’s more expensive rosters, so re-signing the 31-year-old might not be a lock.
Murray reiterated his desire to play for Canada in the upcoming Olympics in Paris this summer, per Parker Gabriel of The Denver Post. However, Jokic was noncommittal about the possibility of suiting up for the Serbia. “I don’t know, my friend, we will see,” he said. “I need to think about it.”
Head coach Michael Malone was clearly frustrated after the series and defended his actions and team, calling it a temporary setback, per Youngmisuk. “This is just a momentary delay,” Malone said. “It’s a failure, it’s not fatal. We’ll be back. The better team won, so I’m taking nothing away from Minnesota … but mentally, emotionally, physically, I think guys are gassed. They’re dead tired. They gave me everything I could ever ask for, and that’s why as much as this hurts, I’ll walk out of this building tonight with my head held very high.”

Northwest Notes: Edwards, Murray, Nuggets, Kessler

May 19th, 2024 at 10:01am CST by Arthur Hill

Never mind momentum, home-court advantage, or the tactical adjustments that have led to four blowouts in the first six games of an unpredictable series. Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards sees a simple calculation for tonight’s Game 7 at Denver, writes Sam Amick of The Athletic.

“I think we’re confident just because we’re a great team,” Edwards told reporters on Saturday. “And we’re going against another great team, (but) we feel like we’re just the better team. That’s all the confidence that we need. The two previous games don’t mean anything because they beat our a– on our home court (in Game 3 and 4). That don’t mean anything. Right now, it’s just about who’s going to play better tomorrow.”

If Minnesota does prevail, Edwards figures to be a main reason, Amick adds. He’s averaging 29.7 points, 5.5 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game in the series while playing 40 minutes per night. He’s also shooting 55.1% from the field and 41.5% from beyond the arc and serving as a key component of a defense that has often overwhelmed the Nuggets. Throughout the series, the Wolves are plus-32 with him on the court and minus-4 when he’s resting.

“First of all, he’s a competitor,” assistant coach Elston Turner said of Edwards. “He is a competitor. You can tell that from the amount of times that he’s tweaked an ankle, hurt his back, got banged up, but he never leaves the f—ing game. He never leaves the game. So I expect him to compete (in Game 7).”

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Nuggets coach Michael Malone said Jamal Murray is “feeling great” after participating in a full practice on Saturday, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Murray, who hurt his right elbow when he ran into a screen early in Game 6, stayed late after practice for extra shooting.
After storming through the playoffs on their way to an NBA title last year, the Nuggets are already facing an elimination game in round two this year, notes Tony Jones of The Athletic. Denver is hoping its edge in postseason experience works to its advantage, and Malone told his players to try to have fun, hoping to change their mindset coming off a 45-point loss in Game 6. “I think experience is a great teacher,” he said. “I think that Game 7s can be too big for some. But I don’t think there’s any doubt that we are going to be ready to go in front of a great crowd. We want to enjoy the moment because a Game 7 represents the two best words in sports. You play all season to get a Game 7 at home, and we’re excited for it and hopefully, we can take advantage of it.”
The Jazz interviewed centers Zach Edey and Donovan Clingan at the draft combine, but that doesn’t mean they’re looking for a replacement for Walker Kessler, explains Sarah Todd of The Deseret News. She states that the team remains “invested” in Kessler’s future and was just doing due diligence by talking to the best players at every position. Team sources told Todd that they’re closely monitoring several wing players with their lottery pick.

Wolves Notes: Conley, Edwards, Towns, McDaniels

May 17th, 2024 at 9:04am CST by Luke Adams

Facing elimination on Thursday, the Timberwolves turned in arguably the most dominant performance of any team this postseason, holding the Nuggets to 70 points on the night and going on separate 20-0, 13-0, and 24-0 runs en route to a 45-point victory. What was the difference for Minnesota? According to Anthony Edwards, the answer was simple, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

“We got Mike Conley back,” Edwards said of his backcourt mate, who missed Game 5 due to a right soleus strain. “That was it.”

It’s a little reductive to give Conley full credit for the Wolves’ incredible performance. After all, he was also on the floor for the team’s home losses in Games 3 and 4. But Minnesota’s players and coaches have spoken all season about the outsized impact the veteran point guard – who was the team’s fifth-leading scorer during the season – has on the Wolves.

“Mike means everything for us,” head coach Chris Finch said after Game 6. “Unbelievable next to Anthony in terms of being able to set him up, play off of him, be in his ear all of the time. Smart defender. Just everything you want in an experienced, veteran point guard and just the very fact that Ant doesn’t have to handle it every single time, that alone helps us. … We desperately missed him the other night.”

Here’s more out of Minnesota:

As Sam Amick of The Athletic details, several Timberwolves players credited a video the coaching staff showed prior to Game 6 for helping the club regain its swagger and get in the right head space heading into Thursday’s contest. “Normally we have a (film) edit, just with certain offensive possessions This edit was more of a production, one of those that show all the big dunks and highlights and the ball movement and with music behind it,” Conley said. “It was a surprise. We’ll usually see the defensive stuff and offensive stuff, but this time they plugged it up to the big speaker. We normally don’t have anything plugged into the big speakers, just the (film) and coach will be talking over it. But this was more of a change-our-mentality sort of thing.” Edwards told reporters that the team’s “energy shifted” after watching the hype video, while Karl-Anthony Towns said it reminded the Wolves of the “discipline, the execution, (and) the tenacity” that they’d been lacking in their losses.
Edwards – who said on Thursday that he wants to be “the best player on both sides of the ball in the NBA,” per McMenamin – was the primary defender on Jamal Murray in Game 6. It was a miserable night for the Nuggets guard, who scored just 10 points on 4-of-18 shooting, though Murray suggested after the loss that a right elbow injury he suffered early in the game was more to blame for his off night. “I put some numbing cream on it just so I didn’t have to feel it every time it extended,” Murray said, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. “… We got two days off. I just got to get ready and be able to be better for Sunday. Yeah, (it’s got) to be better for Sunday, man.”
Towns scored a playoff-low 10 points on Thursday, but his fingerprints were “all over” Minnesota’s Game 6 win, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic contends. Towns grabbed 13 rebounds, handed out five assists, only turned the ball over once, and – perhaps most crucially – stayed out of foul trouble while defending Nikola Jokic. “I told him today, ‘We’re thankful that you didn’t foul because if you foul we lose,'” Edwards said. “Because you are the best matchup we’ve got for Jokic. Like, you do the best job on him.”
After making just 2-of-12 three-pointers and scoring a total of 35 points in the first five games of the series, Jaden McDaniels hit 3-of-5 threes and scored 21 points on Thursday. Chip Scoggins of The Star Tribune takes a closer look at the impact that the Wolves’ “X-factor” had in the victory.

Mike Conley Ruled Out For Game 5

May 14th, 2024 at 9:10pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley won’t play in Game 5 against the Nuggets tonight due to right Achilles soreness, the team’s PR department tweets. Nickeil Alexander-Walker has been inserted into the lineup in Conley’s place.

Conley was injured during the final minute of Game 4. He was downgraded to questionable earlier in the day and, after testing out the ailment prior to the game, it was determined that he wasn’t healthy enough to play.

The veteran point guard has averaged 10.8 points and 7.8 assists per game during the series. Alexander-Walker is averaging 6.8 PPG off the bench against Denver but had three double-digit scoring games against Phoenix in the opening round.

Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray, who was listed as questionable due to a calf injury, will play.

And-Ones: M. James, M. Howard, Tavares, Canada, Awards

May 14th, 2024 at 2:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran guard Mike James, who played for Phoenix and New Orleans in 2017/18 and Brooklyn in 2020/21, has officially been named the EuroLeague’s Most Valuable Player for the 2023/24 season. James has thrived overseas with AS Monaco in recent years — he made the All-EuroLeague First Team in 2022 and the Second Team in 2023.

This season, the 33-year-old ranked second in the EuroLeague in scoring (17.9 points per game) and seventh in assists (5.1 per game). He chipped in a career-high 4.1 rebounds per night and made 37.2% of his three-pointers while also becoming the EuroLeague’s all-time leading career scorer.

James led AS Monaco to a 23-11 regular season record, tied for the second-best mark in the EuroLeague. However, his club was knocked out of the EuroLeague playoffs by Fenerbahce in a hard-fought best-of-five series that included a pair of overtime losses, including a one-point defeat in the deciding game.

James is just the second U.S.-born player to win a EuroLeague MVP award, joining Anthony Parker (2005 and 2006), according to Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com (Twitter link).

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

A pair of former NBA players have agreed to contract extensions with their teams in Spain. Ex-Nuggets guard Markus Howard has signed a new deal that extends his deal with Baskonia through 2028, per a press release from the club. Meanwhile, former Cavaliers and Hawks big man Edy Tavares has reportedly agreed to a three-year extension with Real Madrid, per Ramon Alvarez de Mon of La Galerna (Twitter link). There had been some speculation that Tavares might try to return stateside this summer, but unless his new deal with Madrid falls through, it seems that won’t happen after all.
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nuggets guard Jamal Murray could end up squaring off in the Western Conference Finals later this month. They may also be teammates this summer on the Canadian national team that will compete in the Paris Olympics. Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca takes a look at how the formidable play of the two Western Conference stars continues to raise expectations for Team Canada ahead of its first men’s basketball Olympic appearance since 2000.
The NBA will announce its Sportsmanship Award on Thursday before revealing its All-Rookie, All-Defensive, and All-NBA teams next Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, according to the league (Twitter link). While most of those announcements will happen during the day, the All-NBA teams will be unveiled on TNT on Wednesday evening’s broadcast.

Wolves/Nuggets Notes: Edwards, Conley, Murray, Gordon, Malone

May 13th, 2024 at 10:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

In a series dominated by the visitors, the Timberwolves now find themselves looking for answers as they head to Denver for a pivotal Game 5 on Tuesday.

Wolves guard Anthony Edwards poured in 44 points in Game 4 but it wasn’t enough to prevent from the Nuggets from tying the series. Edwards is unfazed by the prospect of having to beat the defending champions twice more after losing the last two games at home.

“I said it after Game 2, they’re not going to lay down,” Edwards said, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. “They’re going to punch and we’re going to punch back. They beat us up (Sunday). The last two nights, they beat us up in the fight. That’s OK. we’re going to be all right.”

We have more on the Western Conference series:

Mike Conley also looks at the way Minnesota handled the Nuggets in Denver during the first two games of the series as a reason for optimism, Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune relays. “I don’t think anybody thought this series would be over by now,” the Timberwolves point guard said. “We’re confident in our ability to win in Denver. We’ve done it before. We just have to remind ourselves it’s not going to be easy by any means.”
The only name on the injury report for either team for Game 5 is Nuggets guard Jamal Murray. He’s listed as questionable with a left calf strain, Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports tweets. Murray, who has been consistently listed as questionable due to that injury but has yet to miss a playoff game, had 19 points and eight assists in 39 minutes on Sunday.
Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon was a game-changer in Game 4 on both ends of the floor, Tony Jones of The Athletic notes. Not only did he post 27 points, seven rebounds and six assists, he stifled Karl-Anthony Towns, who shot 5-for-18 from the field. “He was our best player,” Nikola Jokic said.
Nuggets coach Michael Malone wants the Denver fans on Tuesday to provide the necessary boost that’s been lacking for the home teams in the series, Jones adds in the same story. “We came up here (in Minnesota) to get two, and to take home court back,” Malone said. “And now that we were able to do that, we have to go back to Denver and protect our home court. We have already lost two games there, so we can’t afford to lose a third. That’s a message to our fans to come on Tuesday night and make that place an absolute zoo. This was a good win for us, but we can’t celebrate because we have a long way to go.”

Northwest Notes: Conley, Malone, Murray, Jazz

May 12th, 2024 at 5:38pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves enter Game 4 on Sunday coming off a lopsided Game 3 loss. Point guard Mike Conley believes it might work in the team’s favor, Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune writes.

“We’ve been good all year at, when we take an L, we learn from it and adjust really quick,” the Timberwolves floor leader said. “Our guys take it personal, get angry and somehow flip a switch. Say it’s-not-going-to-happen-again type of attitude. And that’s what we need to have. We’ve got to continue to be the urgent, desperate team that we’ve played like all year.”

We have more from the Northwest Division:

Nuggets coach Michael Malone got irritated with at least one fan during the team’s game at Minnesota on Friday night, Bennett Durando of the Denver Post reports. Two fans at Target Center were escorted away from the sideline by security during the fourth quarter, though Malone said he didn’t ask for anyone to be removed from the arena. “That happens at times in a hostile environment, and people get a little liquid courage, I guess sometimes,” he said. “And they think they can just say whatever they want to anybody. And I’m not allowing that to happen.”
Malone took some of the ball-handling responsibilities away from Jamal Murray on Friday and that worked well, John Hollinger of The Athletic notes. “We did play better, we were more physical, we were more aggressive., (and) we played more downhill,” Malone said. “But we also tried to alleviate how much Jamal, especially had to bring the ball up. We have two very good ballhandling bigs, Nikola Jokic (and) Aaron Gordon. Let them initiate offense.”
The Jazz had a disappointing day at the draft lottery. Their pick slid from No. 8 to No. 10 as two teams jumped past them. “Obviously (we’re) not happy about it, we’d rather stay at 8 or move up,” Bart Taylor, the Jazz’s VP of player personnel told Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake City Tribune. There had been a 92.8% chance that Utah’s pick would be No. 9 or higher.

Nuggets Notes: Murray, Jokic, MVP, Gordon

May 9th, 2024 at 8:46pm CST by Luke Adams

Not everyone agreed with the NBA’s decision to fine Jamal Murray – rather than suspend him – after he threw a towel and a heat pack in the direction of a referee from the bench during live play in Game 2. One league observer who felt Murray got off lightly is Denver Post columnist Troy Renck, who argued in the wake of the NBA’s ruling that the Nuggets guard deserved a one-game suspension.

Appearing on FanDuel’s Run it Back show on Wednesday (Twitter video link), Shams Charania of The Athletic said the NBA opted for a significant fine (the maximum $100K) instead of a suspension because Murray has no history of similar behavior and showed contrition during a conversation with league officials. Asked on Wednesday about the incident, the star guard said he takes “full responsibility,” but declined to say much more about it when reporters asked follow-up questions.

“I mean, it was two days ago. Not much for me to say about it right now,” Murray said, per Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. Asked about any discussions he may have had with the NBA about the incident, Murray replied, “Do you have any basketball questions?”

Head coach Michael Malone had had a little more to say about the towel and heat pack tosses, which he suggested were out of character for Murray, as Durando relays.

“I’ve never seen that from Jamal. That was very uncharacteristic for me,” Malone said. “And I think it was probably a combination of … taking a charge and it’s not called, a combination of not making shots at the level we know he’s capable of making, a combination of us being down 30 points to a team that we’re trying to beat to get to the Western Conference Finals. When you put that all in that boiling pot, man, that’s a lot to handle. And he didn’t handle it in the way he knows he needs to handle it, and I’m sure he told you guys that. But Jamal will bounce back. I have no doubt about that.”

Here’s more on the Nuggets:

After becoming one of nine players in NBA history to win three Most Valuable Player awards, where does Nikola Jokic rank among the league’s all-time greats? John Hollinger of The Athletic digs into that question, arguing that even if the Nuggets star were to call it a career this summer, he’d still have a strong case to be considered one of the top 20 players in NBA history.
Asked during his MVP press conference if he’s considered how long he wants to play in the NBA, Jokic didn’t offer any specifics, but suggested he doesn’t want to overstay his welcome. “I think that the determination is going to be if I can perform at a high level or not,” Jokic said (Twitter video link via Michael Scotto of HoopsHype). “I think I’m not going to take a spot from some young guys or put the franchise down. As long as I can play on the highest level and help the team win, I think I’m gonna play until then.”
Down 2-0 in the second round with the series headed to Minnesota, Jokic needs to submit an MVP-caliber performance in Game 3 to help save Denver’s season, according to Tony Jones of The Athletic. As Michael Pina of The Ringer writes, Jokic’s averages through two games – 24.0 PPG, 12.0 RPG, and 8.5 APG – look great, but he has shot just 42.1% from the floor (20.0% on threes) while committing 11 turnovers, and hasn’t controlled the game like he often does.
In an entertaining story for Yahoo Sports, Jake Fischer explores the strong bond that has developed in recent years between Jokic and Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon, detailing how Gordon’s skill set and his chemistry with the star center helped turn Denver into a championship team.
In case you missed it, the Nuggets have listed Murray (left calf strain), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (right abdominal contusion), and Reggie Jackson (left calf contusion) as questionable to play in Game 3 on Friday.

Injury Notes: Porzingis, J. Allen, Murray, KCP, Jackson

May 9th, 2024 at 5:44pm CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on Zolak and Bertrand on 98.5 The Sports Hub on Tuesday, Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla offered an encouraging update on the progress Kristaps Porzingis is making in his recovery from a calf strain, per Brian Robb of MassLive.com.

“It’s definitely better than we thought,” Mazzulla said. “I think one thing about KP is, I don’t know what his timetable is, but I know his mentality, and he really pushes himself to get back as quickly as he can. He does a great job working to take care of himself. He’s walking a little bit better, and every day he’s in there doing whatever it takes to try to get back as fast as he can. I appreciate that.”

Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston (Twitter video link) said that “all early indications are super positive” on Porzingis’ recovery, adding that there’s “nothing but optimism” coming from the organization. The big man was on the court for the Celtics’ practice on Wednesday, notes Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link), though he was just doing stationary shooting and wasn’t moving around much.

Previous reporting indicated that the Celtics are hoping Porzingis will be able to return for the Eastern Conference Finals, assuming Boston makes it.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (right rib contusion) has been ruled out for a fifth straight game, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, who confirms (via Twitter) that the big man will miss Game 2 on Thursday in Boston. As he did in Game 1, Isaac Okoro will once again start in Allen’s place.
The Nuggets are listing three players as questionable to play in a crucial Game 3 in Minnesota on Friday, tweets Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette: Jamal Murray (left calf strain), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (right abdominal contusion), and Reggie Jackson (left calf contusion). Murray has repeatedly been listed as questionable due to his calf issue and likely isn’t any danger of missing Friday’s game. However, Caldwell-Pope’s and Jackson’s injuries are new ones.
In case you missed it, the Knicks are listing OG Anunoby (hamstring) as out and Jalen Brunson (foot) as questionable for Friday’s Game 3 vs. Indiana. We have more details here.

Jamal Murray Fined $100K, Avoids Suspension

May 7th, 2024 at 6:37pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Nuggets guard Jamal Murray has been fined $100K for throwing multiple objects in the direction of a game official during Game 2 of their playoff series against the Timberwolves, the league announced in a press release. However, Murray averted a suspension.

Murray threw a towel toward the court during the second quarter of the Nuggets’ 106-80 loss on Monday, then tossed a heat pack that made it onto the court during live play (Twitter video link).

The incident, which Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch referred to after the game as “dangerous” and “inexcusable,” wasn’t caught in the moment by game officials. Referee crew chief Marc Davis said Murray would have been assessed with a technical foul if they knew Murray had thrown the heat pack.

Murray, who scored just eight points on 3-of-18 shooting, has been battling a calf injury during the playoffs.

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