Jamal Murray on Monday night made sure that LeBron James could focus on the 2024 Paris Olympics and next season after sending the Lakers crashing out of the playoffs.
After sinking the ship anchored by LBJ, Murray revealed the deep respect he has for his childhood hero. “I remember when I was a little kid and he was playing against Orlando when he was in Cleveland, and I was wearing his jersey. He’s been one of my favorite players for a [long] time, and it’s just a pleasure to go against him,” said the Canadian baller.
During the series, Murray came clutch for his side twice, once in game 2 and the other one last night. While he did not win his personal battle with LeBron in terms of points, he certainly made sure to have some highlight reel moments with his inspiration growing up.
Jamal Murray Dunks on LeBron James in Game 5
LeBron James was well up for the fight against the Nuggets to avoid back-to-back elimination at the hands of the reigning NBA champions. His 27.8 points per game is the second-highest in the series (joint second with Anthony Davis), just behind Nikola Jokic‘s 28.2 PPG. Jamal Murray, in that regard, is quite far away with an average of 23.6 points, but he had some memorable one-on-one encounters with the 20-time NBA All-Star.
The latest one came in game 5 when Jamal Murray posterized Bron in the fourth quarter. With the game locked at 95 each with just above 4 minutes on the clock, Murray’s dunk on LeBron sent the Ball Arena into a frenzy. The 27-year-old was questionable before the game but decided to soldier on regardless of the calf injury to savor every moment against LeBron. But, this was not their only significant personal battle throughout the series.
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In the first quarter of game 2, Jamal Murray came up to score a bucket, only for LeBron to put up a last-ditch block to deny him. James had a brief staredown with the Nuggets guard, but Jamal stole the show late on with his game-winner at the death.
In game 4, LeBron also went viral for a chase-down block on Murray, which helped the Lakers to force game 5. In the end, Jamal ensured that his game 5 dunk on LeBron was his final mini-battle with the Lakers forward. After disposing of the Lakers, the Nuggets will set their eyes on the Timberwolves, who await them in round 2.
Also Read: “I’m Speechless”: Jamal Murray Overcomes With Emotion After Eliminating Lakers
