What Denver's Best Lineups Say About Jamal Murray
Jamal Murray's per-game line is elite, but last season's best five-man units show his value swings on the shooting placed beside him.
Murray averaged 25.4 points and 7.1 assists last season while shooting 43.5 percent from three and 88.7 percent from the line, marks that place him among the most efficient guards in the league. The lineups that produced Denver's best numbers paired him with shooters rather than more ball-handlers, a pattern worth watching now that one of those shooters is gone.
A Guard Playing Like a Star
Murray played 75 games at 35.4 minutes, averaging 25.4 points, 7.1 assists and 4.4 rebounds. He shot 48.3 percent from the field, hit 43.5 percent of his threes on 7.5 tries a game, and made 88.7 percent of his free throws, for a true shooting mark of 62.2 percent on 26.9 percent usage. His offensive rating of 124.4 outran his defensive rating of 117.7, a net rating of plus-6.8.
The Lineups That Worked
Three groups built around Murray stood out last season. The starters — Aaron Gordon, Nikola Jokic, Murray, Cameron Johnson and Christian Braun — played 360 minutes over 23 games at plus-13.5. A bench-heavy five with Jokic, Murray, Johnson, Peyton Watson and Spencer Jones went plus-20.1 over 171 minutes, the best of the three. Swap in Julian Strawther for Watson, keep everyone else, and the number drops to plus-6.3 over 119 minutes.
What The Gap Says
The difference between plus-20.1 and plus-6.3 wasn't shot creation — both groups ran through the same three players — it was floor spacing. Watson and Jones shot from range in ways Strawther and Braun didn't replicate as cleanly. Denver traded Watson this offseason, so that exact five won't return, but the pattern holds: Murray's efficiency tracks the shooting placed around him more than it tracks his own shot volume.
Contract, Health, and the Verdict
Murray is owed $50.1 million this season, then $53.8 million in 2027-28 and $57.5 million in 2028-29 — the second-biggest number on a roster paying $221.1 million against the first tax apron. He isn't on the injury report. Given that price and that health status, Murray doesn't need a bigger role; he needs the shooting that produced last season's plus-20.1 lineup back around him, and enough of it to make Denver's offense look like that again.
What were Jamal Murray's stats last season?
He averaged 25.4 points, 7.1 assists and 4.4 rebounds across 75 games, shooting 48.3 percent from the field and 43.5 percent from three.
What is Jamal Murray's contract with the Nuggets?
He is owed $50.1 million in 2026-27, rising to $53.8 million in 2027-28 and $57.5 million in 2028-29.
