Jamal Murray's Ascent Into Superstardom

NBA Fans Remember Murray's Playoff Run In The Bubble In 2020, But He's Reminding Everyone Once Again That He Is Really That Good

For two long seasons, Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray has sat on the sidelines injured and watched his teammates during the NBA playoffs. While he sat in street clothes, some might have forgotten how good the Canadian sharpshooter is when the lights get brighter.  

The 2020 NBA Playoffs saw Murray emerge as one of the most promising young players in the league, capturing the attention of fans worldwide. During the opening-round series against the Utah Jazz, he impressed with two 50-point games and an average of 31.4 points per game across seven games in Orlando. Murray's 40-point contribution in game six secured the series-clinching victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. He led the Nuggets to the Western Conference Finals with an impressive 26.5 points per game.

Fast forward to the 2023 NBA playoffs, and Murray is impressing the entire league yet again with his playoff prowess. What makes Jamal Murray done to take his Playoff performances to another level? Let's delve into the fascinating realm of data to find out.

If you go back to his play in the 2019-2020 NBA Playoffs, Murray was getting his baskets from beyond the arc. He hit 62 of his 186 made shots from beyond the arc. Jamal shot 37 percent of his 386 shots from the three-point line, which led to an effective field-goal percentage of 59%. 

Because he shot 45.3% from downtown during the Nuggets’ playoff run that season, teams started to figure out that he was either going to get to the rim or shoot a three. As he was going into his fifth season, it looked like Murray was evolving into an elite scorer. But he was missing something that was keeping him from being at the next level as far as scorers go in the league. 

Most elite scorers have to be able to be what they call a “3-Level Scorer”. That is a player that can score at the rim, mid-range, and beyond the three-point line. It was a skill that some of his classmates had already had. Murray’s draft class included Boston’s Jaylen Brown and New Orleans' Brandon Ingram. 

For Murray to take that next leap to stardom, he would have needed to expand his mid-range game. But his ACL injury halted his first season after the bubble and he missed the entire 2021-2022 season because of it.

As he was getting his legs back this season, his mid-range numbers started to climb back to the numbers he had before the injury. But he needed to be better if the Nuggets were going to make a championship run. 

Looking at the shot chart from Murray's remarkable performance in game 1 against the Phoenix Suns, it's evident that he had a remarkable accuracy from mid-range. He successfully scored 4 out of his 6 shots from that area. However, it's not just a one-time event since his shooting skills from mid-range have been consistently impressive throughout the playoffs. In fact, if you analyze his overall playoff statistics, it's clear that Murray's proficiency in scoring from mid-range is just as impressive as his performance from any other spot inside the three-point line. (Thanks to NBA.com for the information.)

Now, once you go into the numbers in the current series against the Los Angeles Lakers, you see that he’s even more effective. 

It appears that Jamal has attempted an equal number of shots from mid-range as any other spot inside the arc. Interestingly, he has made one less shot from mid-range than from the restricted area (the dotted line on the free throw line) and the paint combined. This recent improvement in Jamal's midrange accuracy has compelled the Lakers to give him more space on the perimeter.

Murray has been making the most of the space provided, with an impressive 73% success rate when attempting Pullup Jump Shots and 53.8% when executing his Step Back Jump Shot. Moreover, he has been quite successful in shooting from beyond the arc, making 9 out of 16 attempts (56%) in the series so far.

The Denver Nuggets are on the verge of making it to the NBA Finals, with Jamal Murray's offensive prowess playing a vital role in their success. With an impressive average of 27.9 points per game, Murray's consistent improvement is set to elevate him from a "Bubble Star" to one of the finest scorers in the league.