Fresh off of a five-year contract extension, Jamal Murray has landed on Bleacher Report’s list of the best 23 players under the age of 23. As Dan Favale explains in the article, the players must be under 23 years old as of opening night 2019-20 in order to receive consideration.
Ultimately, Murray placed sixth on the list, ahead of players such as Trae Young, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Brandon Ingram. To justify Murray’s placement on the list, Favale had this to say:
“Murray is Denver's second-in-command and will ferry a larger share of the offensive burden. Jokic may be the unchallenged No. 1, but his post-ups and vision will only get the Nuggets so far down the stretch of close games. It is no surprise Murray led the team in crunch-time usage rate during the playoffs.”
“Projecting him is extremely difficult. On the one hand, his highs are a trip. Following his 4-of-19 clunker in a Dec. 26 loss to the San Antonio Spurs, Murray averaged 18.9 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.8 assists while drilling 38.1 percent of his pull-up threes over his final 43 games. His brand of shot-making is capable of more than the Nuggets ask him to do wire to wire. He can carry an offense by himself.”
“So far, the good noticeably outstrips the bad. Murray's postseason debut is proof. His inconsistencies dogged the Nuggets, particularly by the end of the Western Conference semifinals, but he had a fair many stretches in which he seemed ready to be the second-best player on a genuine contender.”
Murray enters his fourth season in the league coming off a challenging 14-game playoff run and with his future secured. During the 2019 playoffs, the 22-year-old guard averaged 21.2 points, 4.7 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game. Murray was also able to go toe-to-toe with Damian Lillard in the Conference semifinals, as he averaged 23.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game.
Given Denver’s lofty aspirations and the significant additions made by other Western Conference playoff teams, Murray will need to continue his development in the 2019-20 season in order to help propel the Nuggets farther in the playoffs.
To read the entire section on Murray and to see the other players that made the list, click here.