Nuggets’ Jamal Murray: “I didn’t want to touch the ball” over All-Star break
The joy on Jamal Murray’s face was apparent the moment he stepped on the court.
For his pregame shooting routine.
Murray, rapping to whatever beat flowed inside his bright red headphones, had a different energy than the guy who’d tallied 13 points on 5-of-27 shooting over Denver’s first two games after the All-Star break.
“I changed up my routine today,” Murray said after nailing three 3-pointers en route to 16 points, serving eight assists and snatching six rebounds in Denver’s 121-106 win over Indiana.
When he came out on the court some 90 minutes before tip, Murray’s vibe was different. He joked with shooting partner Michael Porter Jr. He laughed with the team’s developmental coaching staff. Later, he tried learning how to juggle a basketball like Facu Campazzo.
“I said I need to change something,” Murray continued. “I got treatment later, lifted a little early, I was on time for shooting this time, good mood, took off my beats and was joking around with everybody. Just try to switch it up, switch the energy within myself and stop thinking about missing or making, just go out there and play basketball.”
In his third game back from the All-Star break, Murray finally looked in command, much like he was over the scorching stretch of basketball he put together in the 12 games preceding the break. Over the span, Murray had at least 22 points in each contest, which included a career-high 50 at Cleveland.
But then, following a first-half that saw Murray battle various ailments (elbow, shoulder and others), accept a heavier offensive burden due to backcourt injuries and strain his mental health in a season like no other, Denver’s 24-year-old point guard badly needed some time away.
“I didn’t touch the ball for the break,” Murray said. “Mentally, I didn’t want to touch the ball for the break. I came back the first two games, and I wasn’t ready to play.
“ … The work shows,” he added. “So I took five days off, and it showed.”
Against Memphis and then Dallas (on the second night of a back-to-back), Murray sagged his shoulders on misses and let those errant shots bleed into other areas of his game.
“Don’t allow missing shots to make you just a specialist because he’s not that,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone reminded him. “We know that he’s a complete player.”
Before Monday’s game, Murray altered his routine to modify his frame of mind. Even for one of the most mentally strong players on the Nuggets, Murray’s acknowledgement was a reminder of the toll the condensed season, the testing, the physical duress this season is taking on players.
“Every day you go to work, you’re a professional, you show up, you lock in, you go on the court and you get judged my millions and millions of people that are fans and not fans,” Murray said. “I feel like sometimes that affects us as players. It’s a lot on your mental to deal with that every day, doubters, haters, not playing well to playing well, good shot to bad shot, and then after all that … you say, ‘I’m just gonna play, play free.’”
Monday’s was the Murray the Nuggets need. And if a few sluggish performances was what it took to get find his groove, so be it.
Source: Read Full Article