said he meant no disrespect toward Boston when he hoisted a final 3-point attempt that would’ve given him a career-high 51 points, but multiple Celtics took exception with the move.
“I mean, what kind of competitor wouldn’t it bother?” Kyrie Irving said. “I understand if we fouled him, going to the free-throw line. I don’t want to make a big deal out of it. But the ball deserves to go in the crowd after a (expletive) move like that. So I threw it in the crowd.”
Irving heaved the game ball well into the lower bowl at the following the Nuggets’ 115-107 win, a keepsake for a fan and far away from Murray’s mantle. The Nuggets will have to relish their 9-1 start, their best since 1976, some other way.
Jamal Murray says he meant no disrespect with 3. “I just had it in my mind to score 50.”
— Mike Singer (@msinger)
“Definitely unprofessional,” Celtics forward Marcus Morris told reporters. “If I was out there I probably would’ve done something. He’s a young player, he’ll learn.”
Murray finished the game with a career-high 48 points on 19-of-30 shooting and took three shots in the final 1:10 trying to get over the plateau. The game never got closer than 114-107 over the final minute.
“The game is over,” Celtics guard Jaylen Brown told reporters. “Dude had a hell of a night. I felt like it was a little disrespectful.”
Murray’s onslaught marked the most points scored by a Nuggets player since Carmelo Anthony had 50 in 2011.
“I don’t have any words for myself,” Murray said. “I just had no conscience. I really don’t care at that point. Itap the reason why I took that shot at that point. Everybody knew I was trying for 50.”
Murray scored 19 of his 48 in the fourth quarter, including several through dense traffic. He hit 3-pointers off screens, knocked down tough fadeaways and shook every Celtics defender that tried to stop him. At one point or another in the fourth Jayson Tatum, Terry Rozier, Marcus Smart, Al Horford, Brown and Irving all tried their hand at impeding him, all to no avail.
“I really just kind of lose myself sometimes,” he said.
Although he reiterated he meant no harm with his final attempt, he said his emotions got the best of him.
“I know half the team over there, so no hard feelings,” Murray said. It was likely of little solace.
Nuggets coach Michael Malone said some of the team’s veterans talked with Murray about the unnecessary shot.
“Thrilled for the win, thrilled of his performance, he’s just gotta learn, and we talked about it, not taking that last shot,” Malone said. “He’s young, he’s still learning, you never want to try to disrespect anybody.”
9-1.The Nuggets have wins over Finals favorites Golden State and Boston along with victories over Western Conference powers Utah and New Orleans. They loaded up on a relatively light early schedule and have since sawed through every obstacle outside of a road game against the .
Was Malone finally willing to concede that Monday’s 18-point comeback win over Boston was a statement to the rest of the league?
“I’m not sure,” he said. “I can’t speak for the rest of the league. I know that our guys in that locker room truly believe in what we’re doing, and I think, like said, we have really high goals. … People may be taking notice of the great start, the fact that we’re actually playing defense for a change in Denver, but we’re not worried about what people think about us.”
Murray tried to toe the party line, but he couldn’t help himself.
“Are we for real yet?” he asked. “Who else do we have to go through? What else do I got to do? We’ve done some great stuff. We haven’t accomplished nothing, though.”
While the Nuggets are doing their best to handle their blistering start with professionalism, Malone did allow himself a little bit of fun at the expense of the vocal Celtics fans in the crowd.
“Hell of a win, hell of a crowd, hope the Celtics fans had a good time tonight,” he said.
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