Jamal Murray is helped off the court after suffering a leg injury during Denver's loss to Golden State.
Denver’s surprising Monday-night loss to the Golden State Warriors took a turn for the worse in the final minute. With 50 seconds remaining, Jamal Murray crashed to the floor after his left leg appeared to buckle following a contested drive to the basket.
The 24-year-old guard remained on the floor for several moments, clutching his knee area and visibly in pain before ultimately being helped off the court and to the locker room without putting weight on the injured leg. Murray is expected to undergo an MRI to ascertain the extent of the injury.
Murray had missed the previous four games due to soreness in his other knee.
Nuggets coach Mike Malone admitted after the game that the mood in the locker room was “very down.”
“Some of the coaches said when they watched the replay, it looked like he hyperextended it,” a somber Malone said. “It’s just an awful feeling. Keep Jamal in your thoughts and prayers and hopefully, we’ll get some good news.”
“The mood was how you could imagine,” added Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. “We’re just all kind of waiting to hear what’s going on. We’re all worried about him, praying for him and just hoping for the best.”
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) April 13, 2021
Warriors coach Steve Kerr began his postgame comments addressing Murray’s injury rather than his team’s victory.
“Everybody in our locker room is thinking about Jamal Murray,” Kerr said. “Hoping for the best.”
The former seventh overall pick is enjoying a career year for the Nuggets, who had been surging up the Western Conference standings since acquiring Aaron Gordon from Orlando at the trade deadline. A fifth-year guard, Murray is averaging 21.3 points while shooting 48% overall and 41.2% from 3-point range.
NBA.com will have more on this story as it develops.
