DENVER — Point guard Jamal Murray is back, and so is the Denver Nuggets‘ potent two-star game alongside Nikola Jokic, just in time for the playoffs.
Murray scored 15 points in his return to the Nuggets’ lineup Friday night after missing six games with a sprained ankle and he hit a couple of clutch shots in the fourth quarter that helped Denver rally past the Memphis Grizzlies 117-109.
Jokic had his 34th triple-double of the season and in the process became just the third player in NBA history to average a triple-double for the season, joining his current teammate Russell Westbrook and Basketball Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson.
Jokic looked much more comfortable with Murray back on the court with him.
“You could tell he was exhausted,” interim coach David Adelman said. “Jamal is so interesting. The harder it gets, the more tired he gets, the better he plays, as we all know. And to watch those guys play the two-man game at the end, I’d buy a ticket to watch that. It’s beautiful.
“And they take their time, they take what’s there. It’s never forced. And the unselfishness of the other three guys to get out of the way … and watch those guys play, it’s been working for a long time. It’s historically incredible to watch. Like I said, it’s a playoff game. And those two guys, when it gets really intense, it seems like they breathe real easy.”
The Nuggets closed the game on a 14-1 run and Adelman said, “One point given up in the last six minutes is absolutely incredible. It looked like who we’ve been. We’re a team that’s won big games for a long time. We understand the DNA of that kind of game, and we have it, and those guys just stayed with it.”
Murray had a pair of baskets in the closing run to finish 5-of-12 from the floor while Jokic scored eight of his 26 points in those final six minutes of dominance.
“I was trying to shoot myself into rhythm,” Murray said. “It’s been six games. That’s enough to take you out of your rhythm a little bit. … It was good to see the ball go in, but I’m just happy for everybody that got in the game. Everybody played well, we played with energy and urgency like there was something on the line because there was.”
Murray logged 32 minutes in his return. He also had seven assists and five defensive rebounds.
Murray had last played March 26 against the Milwaukee Bucks. During his absence, the Nuggets lost a season-high four consecutive games, a skid that culminated with the Tuesday firings of coach Michael Malone and general manager Calvin Booth, who helped bring Denver its first NBA title in 2023 but who had long clashed.
“Coach always had my back from a young kid coming into this league up until now. He’s always rooted for me. He always had my back and was always getting me in good spirits, so I want to give that same energy to him, the same kind of respect. We don’t get here without him.”
Jamal Murray on fired Nuggets coach Michael Malone
Denver, which snapped its skid with a 124-116 win at Sacramento on Wednesday night, is 2-0 under Adelman. The Nuggets wrap up the regular season Sunday at Houston.
Josh Kroenke, the vice chairman of Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, said he was hopeful the odd timing of the dismissals would spark the Nuggets heading into the playoffs.
“If that doesn’t spark you up, then something’s wrong with you, bro,” Murray said.
A favorite of Malone’s, Murray added, “Coach always had my back from a young kid coming into this league up until now. He’s always rooted for me. He always had my back and was always getting me in good spirits, so I want to give that same energy to him, the same kind of respect. We don’t get here without him.
“He always hated to lose. He was always setting the tone in that regard. So, it (stinks) to see him go like that, especially the way it happened this late. But we’re still going to maintain contact.”
