Jamal Murray

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.

Nuggets Notes: Murray, Malone, Jackson, Long Odds

May 7th, 2024 at 8:26am CST by Luke Adams

It was a miserable night on Monday for Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, who scored just eight points on 3-of-18 shooting, didn’t make a three-pointer, and committed four turnovers as Denver lost a second consecutive game at home to the Timberwolves to fall behind 2-0 in the Western Conference semifinals. At one point in the second quarter, a frustrated Murray was captured on camera throwing a heat pack onto the floor from the bench during a 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, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. In a pool report interview after the game, referee crew chief Marc Davis said Murray would have been assessed with a technical foul – but not ejected – if the officials had realized he was the one who threw the heat pack.

“We weren’t aware it had come from the bench,” Davis said. “If we would have been aware it came from the bench, we could have reviewed it under the hostile act trigger. The penalty would have been a technical foul. … For an ejection, you would have to determine it was thrown directly at somebody versus thrown in frustration.”

“We tried to impress upon [the referees] there probably aren’t many fans in the building that have a heat pack, so it probably had to come from the bench, which they found logical,” Finch said. “I’m sure it was a mistake and an oversight and nothing intentional by the officiating at all, but certainly can’t allow that to happen.”

Murray – who left the arena without speaking to reporters for a second consecutive game, according to Bennett Durando of The Denver Post (Twitter link) – figures to be disciplined by the NBA for the heat pack toss. A fine is more likely than a suspension unless the league determines that Murray was aiming for Davis. We’ll have to wait to see if the penalty reflects the fact that the Nuggets guard evaded any repercussions during the game.

Here’s more on the reeling defending champs:

Nuggets head coach Michael Malone was also lucky to avoid a technical foul in the first quarter of Monday’s loss — he came onto the court to angrily confront Davis (Twitter video link) after Karl-Anthony Towns wasn’t called for an offensive foul following a collision with Murray (video link). Davis explained after the game that Malone didn’t “say anything unsportsmanlike” that warranted a technical. “When [Murray] is out there battling a guy like [Towns] and trying to take charge in what I thought was an easy call and he is not rewarded, I owe it to Jamal Murray or anybody else in that situation to voice my opinion, to voice my concern or disagreement,” Malone told reporters, per McMenamin. “That wound up being a big play because things after that did not go our way. Which is unfortunate, but that is my job. I am going to fight for my guys. I think I have to fight even more for them.”
Backup point guard Reggie Jackson, who has battled ankle issues this year, limped to the locker room with medical staff in the fourth quarter and didn’t return, tweets Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. Jackson will have three days off before Friday’s Game 3 to rest and recover, but his status for that game isn’t yet known.
The Nuggets will face long odds as they look to pull off a comeback against the Wolves, according to Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette, who notes that teams facing a 2-0 deficit in an NBA playoff series have a record of 33-421 (27-319 in best-of-seven series). No team has ever come back from a 3-0 hole.
The way in which the Nuggets have lost the first two games of the Western semifinals has been especially “disturbing,” says Troy Renck of The Denver Post, writing that the team hasn’t matched Minnesota’s “intensity or physicality.”

Nuggets Notes: Murray, Slow Starts, Series Deficit, Offense

May 5th, 2024 at 9:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jamal Murray is listed as questionable for Game 2 of the Nuggets’ second-round series against the Timberwolves, Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports tweets. Murray was also listed as questionable prior to Game 1, in which he was held to 17 points and four assists.

Murray, who is dealing with a calf strain, said on Sunday he’ll just have to grin and bear it, Wind adds in another tweet.

“It’s going to be a part of it. I’ve accepted that,” he said. “There are counters for everything, so I’ve just got to keep adjusting. We’ve got to keep adjusting and find ways to get it done. The calf is whatever it is.”

We have more on the Nuggets:

Denver was down 18-4 in the early going of the 106-99 loss and coach Michael Malone is weary of the slow starts. “We have to do a better job, our starters in particular, have to do a better job of being ready to play and setting the tone early,” Malone said, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “What are we waiting for? I mean, now we’re down 0-1, what are you waiting for?”
The Nuggets never trailed in a series during their championship run last season, nor did they lose a home game until the NBA Finals. So, their drive for a repeat will have to be achieved with more adversity, McMenamin notes. “This year is different,” Malone said. “It’s a different team. It’s a different setup. And now it’s a new challenge. So let’s embrace that. We are down. We didn’t want to be, but we are. So let’s fight like hell (Monday) night and leave it all out there.”
The Nuggets didn’t shoot that badly in Game 1, making 46.7% of their field goal attempts and 41.9% on 3-point tries. Still, Malone saw plenty of room for improvement after reviewing the film, the Denver Post’s Bennett Durando tweets. “Offensively, there were probably 15 possessions where no one had any idea what we were in,” he said. “Not organized. Didn’t space the floor. You can do that against certain teams in the regular season. But against Minnesota … you can’t afford wasted possessions.”

Northwest Notes: Connelly, Edwards, Murray, Nuggets

May 5th, 2024 at 1:55pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Nuggets-turned-Timberwolves team president Tim Connelly has reconfigured Minnesota to be potential giant-slayers against the reigning champs, writes Sam Amick of The Athletic. Connelly has made some major changes to the team since taking over the front office in 2022, most notably acquiring former Jazz stars Mike Conley and Rudy Gobert, plus swingman Nickeil Alexander-Walker.

As Amick notes, Connelly’s decision to emphasize an oversized frontcourt seemed like a direct response to two-time MVP Denver center Nikola Jokic. Connelly has, for now, been striving to retain incumbent big men Karl-Anthony Towns and Naz Reid, the latter of whom he signed to a three-season, $42MM contract as a free agent in 2023.

Following an uncharacteristic 106-99 Game 1 Denver loss to Minnesota, Jokic himself praised the opposition’s flexibility.

“I think that’s why they’re good,” Jokic opined. “They can play big. They can play small. …They’re long, physical. They rebound really well. They’re aggressive. I’m satisfied with the shots that I took. Some of them I missed. Some of them I made. So it’s a tough game, and they’re a really good defensive team.”

For his part, three-time Defensive Player of the Year Gobert appeared to be reveling in the challenge of trying to contain – or at least slow – Jokic.

“I mean, to me, he’s the best player in the world,” Gobert told Amick. “He’s soon to be a three-time MVP for a reason, but I think my abilities are unique in the way I can impact the basketball game. That’s why I’m really grateful for Tim Connelly and all these guys for believing in me, bringing me in this situation to help this team become a championship team and be a top defense. That’s who I try to be every day.”

There’s more out of the Northwest Division:

Timberwolves All-Star shooting guard Anthony Edwards has been looking positively Michael Jordan-esque during Minnesota’s playoff run thus far, opines Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic. As Thompson writes, Edwards has been used a variety of patented moves, on both ends, that emulte the former Bulls great’s signature style — from clutch fadeaway jumpers to thorough perimeter defense to extended mid-air hang time.
Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray, struggling with a calf strain, has also been dealing with some shooting inconsistencies for much of these playoffs to this point. Those issues popped up again during Denver’s Game 1 defeat against the Timberwolves, according to Ryan McFadden of The Denver Post. During the Nuggets’ five-game first round series against the Lakers, Murray made just 40% of his field goal attempts and 29.4% of his three-pointers. Against Minnesota, the Kentucky vet scored 17 points on just 6-of-14 shooting from the floor.
Now trailing 1-0 to the Timberwolves in their second round playoff series, the Nuggets find themselves playing catch-up in a series for the first time in years, per Tony Jones of The Athletic. As Jones notes, Minnesota is one of the few teams with the kind of big, physical roster that’s truly capable of giving Denver trouble throughout the course of a series. The Nuggets will face the challenge of containing Edwards’ athletic, three-level scoring, in particular, while Minnesota’s frontline is able to at least somewhat mitigate the efficacy of Jokic, Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr.

Nuggets/Wolves Notes: Murray, KCP, Connelly, Edwards, Gordon

May 3rd, 2024 at 7:02pm CST by Luke Adams

Jamal Murray was “in and out” of the Nuggets‘ two practices in the days leading up to Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals vs. the Timberwolves on Saturday, head coach Michael Malone said today. As Bennett Durando of The Denver Post writes, Murray was able to play through a left calf strain on Monday when the Nuggets closed out the Lakers, but the injury hasn’t fully healed.

“Just trying to be smart with that calf,” Malone said on Friday. “Knowing that tip-off at 5:00 tomorrow night is priority No. 1.”

When the Nuggets released their initial injury report for Game 1 on Friday, Murray was listed as questionable. However, as Durando tweets, neither the Nuggets’ messaging nor the guard’s comments have suggested that he’s in real danger of missing Saturday’s game unless he experiences a setback.

The news is even better on Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who suffered a sprained left ankle on Monday. According to Durando, Caldwell-Pope was a full participant in both Thursday’s and Friday’s practices. He’s not listed on Denver’s injury report.

Here are a few more notes on the upcoming matchup between the Nuggets and Wolves:

There’s plenty of shared history between the two Northwest clubs, as Jon Krawczynski and Tony Jones of The Athletic detail. While it’s no secret that Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly spent years running Denver’s front office, it’s also worth noting that current Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth used to work for Minnesota. The familiarity between the Nuggets and Wolves, who are meeting in the playoffs for a second straight year, could help create the NBA’s next great rivalry, The Athletic’s duo suggests.
Referring to the Timberwolves as a “really dangerous” team, Nuggets star Nikola Jokic heaped praise on Minnesota guard Anthony Edwards (“He’s a really talented player who can do everything, who has everything in his arsenal”) and lauded former Denver executive Connelly for the job he has done building the Wolves, according to Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports (Twitter link) and Durando of The Denver Post. “I think they’re built really well,” Jokic said. “Hopefully we are not going to get swept. I think Tim Connelly, when he made that (Rudy Gobert) trade, everybody was laughing at him and what he was doing. But he made a great team. And I think he deserves great credit for doing that.”
Aaron Gordon will be a crucial X-factor for the Nuggets in the series, according to Sean Keeler of The Denver Post, who points to the tremendous job the forward did defending Karl-Anthony Towns in the playoffs last spring. When Gordon guarded Towns during that first-round series, the Wolves’ star shot just 37% from the field and had three times as many turnovers (9) as assists (3), Keeler notes.
Seerat Sohi of The Ringer provides an in-depth preview of the series, suggesting that how the Wolves fare against the defending champions will serve as a “true litmus test of their progress.”

Nuggets Notes: Murray, Caldwell-Pope, Porter Jr.

April 30th, 2024 at 10:42am CST by Luke Adams

Earlier in the day on Monday, before he hit his second game-winning shot of the Nuggets‘ first-round series and knocked the Lakers out of the postseason, Jamal Murray wasn’t sure he would even suit up, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post.

Murray told reporters after the game that the team’s medical staff was hesitant to give him the go-ahead to play in Game 5 due to the left calf strain that had caused him to be listed as questionable. The star guard received clearance after pleading his case to head coach Michael Malone and team VP of sports medicine Steve Short in a meeting that Malone described as “emotional,” per Durando.

“I came a little earlier today just to see if I was gonna be able to go. And I felt like I could,” Murray said. “And they just didn’t want me to risk it. They told me no. They told me no. And I didn’t say no. I just didn’t want to leave my teammates out there. We’ve been battling all season. Everybody’s hurt at some point. Everybody’s going through something. And I just wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I wasn’t about to play this game. … I’m just glad they listened to me. They listened to me listening to my body.”

Although Murray made it through the night with no setbacks and led the Nuggets to the victory with his game-high 32 points, his health situation hasn’t been resolved, according to Durando, who notes that calf strains don’t disappear overnight. Still, Murray’s heroics ensure that he and the Nuggets will have four days off before they host the Timberwolves on Saturday in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals, so there’s some time for the injury to heal.

Here’s more on the Nuggets:

Murray wasn’t at his best during the first round, making just 40% of his shots from the field, including 29.4% of his three-pointers, but his big shots in clutch situations helped cement his place among the league’s all-time postseason performers, contends Tony Jones of The Athletic. “The bigger the moment, the bigger Jamal Murray shines,” Malone said. “He’s one tough cookie.”
Murray isn’t the only Nuggets starter who will welcome the four-day layoff for injury recovery purposes. As Durando writes for The Denver Post, swingman Kentavious Caldwell-Pope left Monday’s game due to a sprained left ankle. He returned to start the second half and finished the game, but didn’t appear to be operating at 100%.
Michael Porter Jr. enjoyed perhaps the best playoff series of his career in round one, buoying a Nuggets offense that struggled to score efficiently from beyond the arc, according to Tyler King of The Denver Gazette and Ryan McFadden of The Denver Post. The veteran forward made 20-of-41 (48.8%) three-point attempts vs. Los Angeles, while his teammates hit just 33-of-131 (25.2%). Porter’s success came during a tumultuous time for his family — his brother Jontay was recently banned from the NBA for gambling, while another brother, Coban, was sentenced to six years in prison due to a fatal drunk driving incident. “At the end of the day, this is basketball. I got way bigger stuff going on off the court,” Michael said. “To come in here with my sanctuary and be able to play well, it feels good. There’s a lot bigger stuff going on than this.”

Northwest Notes: Daigneault, Edwards, Wolves, Nuggets, Jazz

April 29th, 2024 at 2:43pm CST by Luke Adams

A day after Mark Daigneault was named the NBA’s Coach of the Year for 2023/24, Thunder center Chet Holmgren lauded his head coach for his “crazy X’s and O’s” and his ability to connect with one of the NBA’s youngest rosters, per Rylan Stiles of SI.com.

“Shoutout to Mark man. Helluva coach,” Holmgren said. “… (He) puts us all in position to be successful. … He’s not that much older than us. He’s one of the bros.”

As John Hollinger of The Athletic, the world of NBA coaching is a “thankless” one, so now that he has shown the sort of success he can have in the regular season, Daigneault will be judged going forward on how and the Thunder perform in the postseason. Daigneault is off to a promising start on that front, notes Hollinger, pointing to an instance in Saturday’s win in which the Thunder extended their lead by using Gordon Hayward as a small-ball center.

As Hollinger writes, it would have been easy for Oklahoma City to take a conservative approach on Saturday with a 2-0 lead in the series, but Daigneault has shown repeatedly that he “doesn’t do safe and predictable.” His unorthodox strategies – which lean heavily on data and analytics, Hollinger points out – have the Thunder one win away from their first second-round series since 2016.

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

Fourteen-time All-Star Kevin Durant, who was on the receiving end of plenty of trash talk from Anthony Edwards during the Timberwolves‘ four-game sweep of Phoenix, had nothing but praise for the young star after Game 4, tweets Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. “I’m so impressed with Ant. So impressed with Ant,” Durant said of Edwards, who averaged 31.0 PPG during the series. “My favorite player to watch. Just grown so much since he came into the league.”
The Timberwolves‘ dominant first-round victory over the Suns serves as a reminder that many NBA analysts were wrong about the Rudy Gobert trade, according to Jim Souhan of The Star Tribune. There was skepticism about the ability of Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns to be effective alongside one another, but they’ve proven over the course of this season that’s not a problem, Souhan adds.
While both Nuggets point guards are banged up, neither Jamal Murray (left calf strain) nor Reggie Jackson (left ankle sprain) has missed a game yet during the team’s first-round series vs. the Lakers. That streak is up in the air with Murray still considered questionable for Monday’s Game 5, but Jackson seems good to go — he’s listed as probable to play, tweets Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette.
In a report for The Salt Lake Tribune, Andy Larsen, Blake Apgar, Kevin Reynolds, and Robert Gehrke take a look at how the Delta Center – the Jazz‘s home arena – might be affected by team owner Ryan Smith‘s plan to bring the NHL to Utah.

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