Winner: Jamal Murray Heat-Check
It’s official. Jamal Murray is the official 2019 NBA Playoff Jekyll and Hyde. He acts as two polar opposite beings in the same 48-minute span. For the first three quarters of Denver’s comeback win (before the comeback) over San Antonio, Murray was simply a disaster. 0-8 from the field.
For the player on Denver who’s more or less become the leading shot-taker (keyword: taker), Murray’s abysmal shooting numbers from game one and the first 75 percent of Tuesday’s contest were unacceptable if a playoff series victory was part of the Nuggets’ agenda.
I can’t necessarily blame Jamal for jacking ungodly amounts of jumpers. Really, what are Denver’s other options? Once you give their roster a good stare, the offensive potential evaporates. Who on this roster can get you a bucket in an iso situation? As I’ve said before, to be taken seriously in the playoffs (or in the regular season for that matter), you need two bucket-getters – guys that can score on any possession in a variety of ways.
For Denver, I’m certain they don’t have two, and there are significant questions about the one. Jokic simply doesn’t possess the necessary athleticism or post move array to be a dominant scorer at the center spot, and besides him, well, there’s Murray, who’s inconsistency is his main calling card. He has to take over in the final minutes because he is the only one capable of salvaging a playoff game, clearly.
Though make-less from the field through three, Murray’s confidence didn’t waver when the spotlight heightened in quarter number four. When the stakes elevated, so did his game, and in terrific fashion.
Over the final minutes, Denver’s offense settled around Murray, and he delivered his first playoff statement. 8-9 from the field for 21 points in the fourth quarter. He took off his velcro sneakers and laced up his big boy boots. For as much angst as he causes Denver fans with his boneheaded shot-attempts and rattling misses, he leaves his fans drooling over his heroic heat-checks, which, in this case, won Denver their first playoff game in quite some time.