Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray took responsibility Wednesday for throwing objects in the direction of an official during a playoff game, attempting to deflect follow-up questions about the incident and emphasizing that he has moved on.
“It is what it is,” he said when asked about his punishment from the NBA, a $100,000 fine but no accompanying suspension. “I take full responsibility, so on to the next.”
When asked about his frustration boiling over, a terse Murray repeated that his focus is Game 3 against the Timberwolves. “I mean, it was two days ago,” he said. “Not much for me to say about it right now.” Murray then asked if reporters had any basketball questions for him when pressed further about his communication with the league regarding the incident.
Murray had departed the locker room without speaking to reporters Monday night after he threw a towel and a heat pack in the direction of lead official Marc Davis during a 106-80 loss.
“I’ve never seen that from Jamal. That was very uncharacteristic for me,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone, who had been unaware of the incident when asked about it during his postgame news conference. “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.”
Murray and the Nuggets trail their second-round series 2-0 as they fly to Minnesota on Thursday morning. Game 3 is Friday night at Target Center. Only five teams in NBA history have won a playoff series after losing the first two games at home, most recently the Clippers in 2021. Only 33 teams have rallied to win a series after falling behind 2-0 regardless of home court.
“As I told our players, is it possible? Yes. History tells us it’s possible,” Malone said. “But you have to participate in your own recovery. Just because it’s been done before doesn’t mean we’re going to do it. Only if we have the requisite mindset.”
Mental fortitude was Malone’s biggest concern as the Nuggets gathered for a film session, which featured nine clips from the Game 2 blowout — some offense, some defense. A significant element of Denver’s scoring struggle has been Minnesota’s relentless ball pressure. The Timberwolves, perhaps with Murray’s sore left calf in mind, have picked him up near mid-court, forcing him to reckon with his diminished ability to get separation from defenders. Even when it hasn’t resulted in a turnover, it has often led to Denver working late in the shot clock. The Nuggets were forced into bad, contested shots in Game 2. The Timberwolves blocked 12, even without their central rim protector, Rudy Gobert.
Malone refused to make injury excuses for Murray, echoing Murray’s own message about the calf, but the coach acknowledged that Denver has focused some of its practice time on finding ways to help Murray negotiate around any physical limitations.
Jaden McDaniels (3) and Nickeil Alexander-Walker (9) of the Minnesota Timberwolves defends Jamal Murray (27) of the Denver Nuggets during the second quarter at Ball Arena in Denver on Monday, May 6, 2024. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
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“I think we just need to help (ball-handlers) out. Jamal can’t do that alone, and Joker can’t do that stuff alone,” Christian Braun said. “It’s gotta be a by-committee thing. They’re playing defense by committee. We’ve gotta help (Murray) out, whether it’s screening in the backcourt, somebody else bringing it up, whatever it is. Just get into our offense and play organized basketball. When we do that, we’re really tough to beat.”
Gobert is expected to return for Game 3 after the birth of his first child, meaning the Nuggets are likely to see more of a schematic identity that resembles the series opener from Minnesota. But the primary theme that translated to Game 2 regardless was the Timberwolves’ physicality. Malone stressed to Denver’s players to play through what they might perceive as fouls, rather than stopping to look at the officials.
“I was probably more disappointed with the, not on-the-court but off-the-court, our reaction to the adversity,” Malone said, speaking on not just Murray but the Nuggets collectively. “I’d never seen that in my nine years, and the first time in the last six years of making the playoffs. How when things got tough, we just kind of fell apart.”
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