MEMPHIS, Tenn. — On Tuesday night, we saw the old Jamal Murray. We saw the Murray who has spent so long in the NBA as a lethal offensive player. We saw the Murray who could take over a game with his ability to make shots and create for himself and his teammates.
The Denver Nuggets defeated the Memphis Grizzlies 122-110 without superstar Nikola Jokić. But they got the Jamal Murray who was such an important cog in the 2023 NBA title machine, not the one who has struggled and sputtered through most of this season. The Nuggets got 27 points and six assists. They received five 3-point makes, and an aggressive Murray who set a certain tone from wire to wire.
This hasn’t been an easy six months for Murray. He had a difficult Olympics with Team Canada. He had a slow recovery from a calf strain. He’s faced criticism and scrutiny concerning his play to start this season. His play hasn’t been good enough, and he knows it. He spoke on this and other issues in an interview with The Athletic.
“I take full accountability,” Murray said. “It’s not easy when you aren’t playing well. It hasn’t been easy with guys like Nikola and Aaron (Gordon) out. We were fully capable of winning these last games. But, for me, I have to play better. I have to take account for that. It starts with me.”
It isn’t about the last few games for Murray, two of three which have been losses. It’s about the big picture. The Denver Nuggets will not win a championship in 2025 if Murray isn’t the same player he was in 2023. Tuesday night gave a glimpse into the guy he was. But for too many nights this season, Murray has been a fraction of that. He hasn’t been as proficient or explosive. He hasn’t gotten the same separation off the dribble, causing his shots to be more contested than normal.
But more importantly, he hasn’t been as aggressive. Peak Murray looks to cook offensively, no matter who is in front of him defensively, and no matter who is on his team. It’s what makes his partnership with Jokić work as well as it has over the years. Murray never deferred to Jokić, and because of that, their two-man game was more like having two No. 1 options, instead of having a No. 1 and a No. 2.
Murray carries himself with a swagger and a quiet confidence that often yielded an offensive killer, especially during Denver’s 2023 title run. Who will ever forget him outplaying LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the Western Conference finals? Who will forget him scoring at will against Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and the Phoenix Suns? If the Nuggets are to get back to that level again, Murray has to get back to that level.
“I think it’s less about shot making and more about me being aggressive,” Murray told The Athletic. “The last few nights, it’s been a different game, not having Nikola there. But the thing is that I have to take it upon myself to be better, and not put the blame on anyone else. I have to have a different mentality on the nights he doesn’t play. It’s not going to be the same shots, or the same game. It’s all mental for me. We all have to have a different mentality when Nikola isn’t playing.”
The season is young. But if Murray continues on this trajectory, it would be far and away the worst season he’s played since his rookie year, almost across the board. He’s averaging 18.3 points per game, which would be his lowest average since the 2018-19 season. He’s shooting 41 percent from the field, which would be his lowest since his rookie season, 2016-17. He’s shooing 33.4 percent from 3-point range, which would be the lowest of his career. For comparison’s sake, Murray has averaged more than 20 points per game in each of the last three seasons. So, he’s not only dropped, it’s a significant drop. He’s normally one of the better volume 3-point shooters in the league, and he’s eclipsed 40 percent twice in his career.
Without Jokić, Murray becomes the primary player for defenses to try and take out of a game. We saw that on Sunday night in Memphis, as the Grizzlies consistently sent extra attention at the star guard. What Murray did wrong that night was settle too much for jumpers and post-ups against Scotty Pippen Jr. On Tuesday night, Murray was a lot more aggressive from above the arc, and a lot more aggressive at getting into the paint off the dribble. It opened up his entire game.
“Our job is to support Jamal and to help him by making shots around him,” Denver forward Peyton Watson said. “But we want him to be who he is, and it’s our job to provide that kind of support around him.”
Jamal getting it going 🏹
27 PTS / 3 REB / 5 AST / 2 BLK / 3 STL pic.twitter.com/DZlPCKdW0V
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) November 20, 2024
Murray told The Athletic that he is completely healthy and free of the calf strain that he suffered in the playoffs, the injury that limited his performance in the second round against the Minnesota Timberwolves. That same injury limited him in the Olympics. He knew he wasn’t completely healthy going into the summer. But he also knew that Team Canada had a star-studded roster, and he wanted to be a part of it.
There was a lot of talk about how Murray looked, when he wasn’t the impact player that people thought he would be. And it’s true that Murray didn’t look very good. But Murray, who has been previously hesitant to talk about the subject, knew on some levels that his Olympic performance wasn’t going to look like the regular Murray.
“I was definitely hurt going into the Olympics,” Murray said. “I was good enough to play. Obviously, I didn’t play great. I knew I wasn’t going to be great, but I wanted to be there. I wanted to play for my country. I wanted to be with my teammates. So I don’t look at it as the same mandate as everyone else. The Olympics was what it was. It’s important what I’m doing for the Nuggets, the team that’s paying me this money, the team that wants me here. I have to look at what I can do for this team.”
His performance on Tuesday has to be a starting point for him and the Nuggets as a whole. Denver is in a good spot in the Western Conference. But even when Jokić is available, an argument can be made that the Nuggets rely on him too much. If Denver can consistently get the Murray that showed up on Tuesday, that puts the Nuggets closer to where they want to be.
If nothing else, Tuesday night serves as a message to Murray himself that he can get it done at a high level. And that is a welcome sign to him, and the Nuggets.
“I’m still me,” Murray said.
(Photo: Justin Ford / Getty Images)
