Jamal Murray

On June 23, 2016, Murray was selected by the Denver Nuggets with the seventh overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft.[18][19] On August 9, 2016, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Nuggets.[20] On November 13, 2016, he scored a career-high 19 points in a 112–105 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.[21] He topped that mark on November 22, scoring 24 points in a 110–107 win over the Chicago Bulls.[22] On December 1, he was named Western Conference Rookie of the Month for games played in October and November.[23] On February 17, 2017, Murray was named MVP of the Rising Stars Challenge after posting a game-high 36 points (9-14 3FG) and a game-high 11 assists in Team World's 150–139 victory over Team USA.[24] On April 7, 2017, he scored a career-high 30 points in a 122–106 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.[25] At the season's end, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.[26]

On November 11, 2017, Murray scored a career-high 32 points in a 125–107 win over the Orlando Magic.[27] Six days later, he had a 31-point effort in a 146–114 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.[28] On January 22, 2018, he scored a career-high 38 points, including a three-point play in the final minute, as the Nuggets beat the Portland Trail Blazers 104–101.[29] On February 1, 2018, he had a 33-point effort in a 127–124 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder.[30]

On November 5, 2018, Murray scored a career-high 48 points in a 115–107 win over the Boston Celtics.[31] On December 18, he had 22 points and a career-high 15 assists in a 126–118 win over the Dallas Mavericks.[32] On December 29, he scored 46 points and made a career-high nine 3-pointers in a 122–118 win over the Phoenix Suns.[33] On January 3, he scored 17 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter of the Nuggets' 117–113 win over the Sacramento Kings.[34] On January 17, he scored 22 of his 25 points in the third quarter of the Nuggets' 135–105 win over the Bulls.[35] On February 6, after missing six games with a sprained left ankle, Murray had 19 points and 11 assists in a 135–130 loss to the Brooklyn Nets.[36] In Game 3 of the Nuggets' second-round playoff series against the Trail Blazers, Murray had a playoff career-high 34 points in a 140–137 quadruple-overtime loss.[37] In Game 4, he again scored 34 points in a 116–112 win.[38]

On the first day of free agency period, Murray signed a contract extension of a 5-year, $170 million maximum deal with the Nuggets.[39]

On November 17, 2019, Murray recorded a season-high 39 points and 8 assists, including seven three-pointers, in a 131–114 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.[40] On December 23, Murray scored 28 points and would knock down a game-winning step-back jumper against the Phoenix Suns with 2.5 seconds remaining in overtime to secure a 113–111 road victory.[41] On January 4, 2020, he tied his season-high 39 points in a 128–114 loss to the Washington Wizards.[42] After missing ten games due to an ankle sprain suffered against Charlotte on January 15,[43][44] Murray returned to have one of the best stretches of his career, averaging 31.3 points per game over a four-game stretch, including 36 points on 14-of-17 shooting and six three-pointers against the Suns on February 8.[45] On March 4, Murray hit yet another game-winner, making an off-balance jumper with 4.5 seconds remaining in regulation to seal a 114–112 victory over the Hornets while capping off an 18-point, 6-assist performance.[46]

On August 17, during the Nuggets' first round matchup with the Utah Jazz in the 2020 NBA playoffs, Murray recorded 36 points and 9 assists, scoring 20 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to lead the Nuggets to a 135–125 Game 1 victory.[47] In Game 4 six days later, Murray erupted for a career-high 50 points, along with 11 rebounds and 7 assists, in a 129–127 loss to the Jazz. With Donovan Mitchell scoring 51, it was the first time in NBA playoff history that two opponents scored at least 50 points in the same game.[48][49] In a potential elimination game in Game 5 with Denver down 3–1 in the series, Murray recorded 42 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists to lead the Nuggets to a 117–107 win and force a Game 6, where Murray again scored 50 points, shooting 9–12 from three and helping the Nuggets extend the series to a Game 7 with a 119–107 victory.[50][51] Following Game 6, Murray became emotional during the postgame interview with TNT’s Jared Greenberg, addressing racial injustice, as well as honoring George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, as each of their pictures were on his shoes.[52]

On September 15, in Game 7 against the Los Angeles Clippers, Murray scored 40 points while hitting six three-pointers, leading the Nuggets to a series-clinching 104–89 win to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2009. With the win, the Nuggets became the first team in NBA history to comeback from multiple 3–1 deficits in a single postseason.[53] However, the Nuggets would go on to lose in the Western Conference Finals in five games to the eventual NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers, with Murray recording 28 points, 8 rebounds and 12 assists in the lone Denver victory in Game 3.[54]