2. Jamal Murray
Playoff Averages: 27.1 PTS, 6.4 AST, 5.0 TRB, 50.2%, 49.1 3P%, 91.3 FT%
Jamal Murray has been one of the best players in the NBA since the playoffs began on August 17th. After playing on an entirely different level against the Utah Jazz during the opening round, Murray began to slow down in the first couple of games against the Clippers.
Murray, an elite scorer as of late, has a whole arsenal of ways he can score against opposing teams’ defenses. During the playoffs, he has excelled at getting to and finishing at the rim, along with hitting his three-point shots at a very efficient rate.
He most recently kept his team’s playoff hopes alive in a stellar game seven on Tuesday night, putting up a 40 point game, on 57.7 FG percentage. He has proved to the entire basketball world that he is a legit star in this league and that he is among the top guards in a deep Western Conference.
The biggest point made during that game seven is that Jamal Murray isn’t done just yet. After struggling to put up points early on in the series, he showed up when his team needed him the most and he played like an MVP in the series’ closing game.
Los Angeles Lakers’ centers JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard are expected to play a lot more against the Nuggets, which will limit the number of times Jamal Murray can get to the hoop. It will likely be guards Danny Green and Alex Caruso doing most of the defending on Murray, both of whom played great defensive during the semifinals against the Houston Rockets.
The Lakers have had to deal with Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum, and James Harden during these playoffs, who can all score at all different levels on the floor like Murray. The Lakers have done a great job of containing high scoring guards so far and Murray is just the next challenge in line for the team.
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