The Leap: Jamal Murray's growth as a passer

Welcome to 'The Leap,' a Nuggets.com mini-series highlighting the in-postseason growth of some of Denver's cornerstone players.

For the inaugural edition of 'The Leap,' we'll be analyzing Jamal Murray's growth as a passer in the NBA Finals and the masterpiece he painted in Game 4.

Jamal Murray can score with the best.

He put up a record-breaking 53 combined points in three quarters of play between Games 2 and 3 of the Western Conference Finals. He's averaged at least 26 points in two of his three postseason runs. He dropped at least 30 points eight separate times and broke 35 points on three occasions in 20 total playoff games in 2023.

He's the perfect yin to Nikola Jokić's yang because of his explosive scoring ability. Nikola typically does damage as a passer and ranked fourth in assists per game with 9.7 during the regular season. Murray's efficient scoring from all three levels of the floor completes their synergy.

In the Finals, however, their roles flipped.

There was much discussion about whether the HEAT intentionally "turned Jokić into a scorer," and Miami held the Joker to just 4 total assists in three separate Finals games. Overall, he averaged 7.2 dimes in the Finals, his fewest assists per game in any 2023 playoff series.

Instead, Jokić took on the scoring mantle with 30.2 points per game, in large part why he won Finals MVP.

But he wasn't the only Nugget to undergo a role makeover.

Murray, too, showcased malleability to secure Denver's first NBA championship in franchise history. Murray averaged 21.4 points in the Finals, his fewest points per game in all four playoff rounds, but he contributed by taking on some of Jokić's playmaking load.

Murray averaged 10 assists in the Finals, a personal best for him in any playoff series. He was remarkably consistent with his passing, as well, tossing out at least 10 dimes in four of the five games. He led the Finals in total assists with 50—14 more than the second-place Jokić.

Sometimes, we're far too rigid with how we evaluate players and their progression. Murray is an all-world scorer. A clutch performer. We know this. But against Miami, he gave fans a glimpse at just how much more growth is still on the table for him. The NBA Finals was his pièce de résistance as a passer, his zenith. And he's just 26 years old; he's got plenty of time to continue to excel as a creator for others.

After Denver's Game 2 victory against the Los Angeles Lakers in the Conference Finals, Michael Malone preached the importance of malleability. He told reporters, "In the playoffs, you can’t be a specialist. Specialists don’t play in the playoffs."

Murray's adaptability as a star player was on full display in Game 4 of the NBA Finals. He had a rare off-night as a scorer, finishing with just 15 points on 5-of-17 shooting, but that didn't stop him from positively impacting the game. Instead of getting discouraged about a rough shooting night, Murray consistently punished Miami's defense with his passing. He dished out 12 assists, a career-high for him in the postseason, and it led to a 108-95 Nuggets victory over the HEAT to build a 3-1 lead in the series... a lead they never looked back on.

Given how lethal Jokić and Murray are as scorers and passers, naturally, pairing them in the two-man game in either the pick-and-roll or via handoffs is one of Denver's best actions.

Miami had zero answers for the two-man game between Denver's stars throughout the Finals. Not one. That's something we wrote about repeatedly throughout the series, and Game 4 was no exception.

And look, it wasn't like Miami shrugged their shoulders and gave up when Denver went to its two-man game. Far from it. Head coach Erik Spoelstra is one of the best in the business, and he tried everything. Multiple pick-and-roll coverages. Zone defenses. He alternated those coverages possession-by-possession with the hopes of throwing Denver off-course. It didn't work.

Much of that was due to just how well Murray assessed what the defense was giving him and made decisions from there. Game 4 was the best example of his guilefulness as a floor-mapper.

Miami's most used coverage in Game 4 was "blitzing" pick-and-rolls by having both defenders converge onto Murray after Jokić set a screen. The goal was to take away Murray's preferred option in the halfcourt—scoring—and hopefully force him into turning the ball over. Jokić is too good of a passer and scorer to hyper-focus on one of those skills to this degree. Heading into the postseason, at least, Murray was a little more unproven as a passer.

It's fair to say he changed that narrative.

Murray did an excellent job drawing in both defenders on pick-and-roll blitzes before dishing the ball to Jokić. He did it in a variety of ways, too. He flipped gorgeous bounce passes between two defenders to Jokić rolling to the rim. When Nikola popped to the top of the three-point line, Murray found him with a gorgeous jump pass.

Murray's passing versus the blitz also gave Jokić opportunities to attack in the "short roll," the short roll being when the big man rolls halfway into the paint and receives the pass. From there, Jokić could take the midrange shot, continue driving to the rim, or pass to an open teammate.

The key to all of this was Murray getting off the ball early and trusting his teammates, particularly Jokić, to punish the defense with a 4-on-3 advantage.

"Tonight it just felt like they were blitzing every pick-and-roll, just basically trying to limit my shot attempts, and I just wasn't fighting it," said Murray after Game 4. "We've got a squad. We've got a lot of guys that can come and impact the game, a lot of guys playing with confidence, so I'm not going to fight it. Make an easy pass, and that's why I've got four other guys out there."

Murray also made the right play against more traditional coverages like drop coverage. Drop coverage is when the big man hangs back in the painted area to contain shots at the rim from both the ball-handler and roller. It was primarily on Bam Adebayo to play the cat-and-mouse game between Jokić and Murray as the drop defender.

Throughout the evening, Murray laced pocket passes to Jokić in a variety of manners. Bounce passes. Jump passes. You name it. His accuracy and timing was pristine, and it gave Denver numerous opportunities.

His best play against Miami's drop coverage occurred in the second quarter. He and Jokić intertwined for a pick-and-roll, Adebayo dropped back, and Murray finished the play with a gorgeous pass to Michael Porter Jr., who cut behind his defender. The thing to watch in this clip is Adebayo, who focused on Jokić at the top of the three-point line instead of helping at the basket. In large part, that's due to Murray manipulating the defense with his eyes to get Adebayo leaning in the wrong direction.

In the rare instances that Miami switched on pick-and-rolls by having Jokić and Murray's defenders swap assignments, Murray was quick to punish the HEAT by finding Jokić with a pass to target the mismatch. From there, Jokić utilized his brutalizing physicality to post up his smaller defender and create offense for Denver.

But Murray did more than just make the correct read against Miami's pick-and-roll defense. He also dished some truly awesome passes. Spectacular dimes, even.

First, it was the spinning drop-off pass to Porter Jr. while tip-toeing along the baseline. Later, when Jokić was off the floor with foul trouble, Murray took it upon himself to drive into the painted area against four HEAT defenders and find Jeff Green in the corner for a dagger three-pointer. In the first quarter of Game 4, he slungshot a pass to Aaron Gordon for a great look at the rim.

"He did not get bored with making the right play. He did not say, 'I'm going to save us' and try to carry the team. He just read the defense, made the right play, and trusted. That's a big part of our culture is trusting one another," said Malone after Game 4. "I thought Jamal trusting his teammates tonight was just at such a high level. I'm really proud of his performance."

Murray proved he belonged on the biggest stage. He showed he's one of the best basketball players in the world. Now, he's got a ring to show for it.

He's always been a top-tier scorer, a guy who's unafraid of the moment. His passing is starting to catch up.

If that progression continues, the Jokić and Murray two-man game will grow even more powerful. Murray becoming an uber-elite playmaker could very well be the final Infinity Stone for this potential Nuggets dynasty.