The Denver Nuggets’ DeMar DeRozan signing has sparked plenty of debate, but there’s one obvious way it could pay off right away: easing the burden that has followed Jamal Murray into the playoffs for the past three seasons.
That doesn’t erase what Murray has meant to Denver in the regular season. He has helped the Nuggets finish above .600 in each of the last three seasons, and in 2026 he earned his first All-Star nod.
But the postseason has told a different story. After his 2020 playoff breakout - the run that earned him the nickname “Bubble Murray” - and his huge role in Denver’s 2023 championship, where he averaged 26.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 7.1 assists per game while shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 39.6 percent from three, he hasn’t looked like the same player on that stage.
There’s no denying Murray has still put up numbers. He has scored at least 20.6 points per game in each of the last three playoffs.
The problem is how those points have come. Last season was especially rough, with Murray hitting just 35.7 percent of his shots overall and 26.2 percent from beyond the arc.
That drop-off matters because Denver’s offense needs Murray to punish defenses that load up on Nikola Jokic. When he hasn’t been able to do that, the attack has bogged down. Injuries to key players haven’t helped, and the Nuggets have also gone through stretches without another dependable shot creator beside Jokic and Murray.
That’s where DeRozan comes in. If Murray finds his old playoff rhythm again, Denver’s offense gets another gear. If he doesn’t, DeRozan at least gives the Nuggets another proven option to keep things moving and take some pressure off their two stars.
At 37, DeRozan may have his skeptics, but the numbers say he still has something left. He averaged 20.3 points per game across his two seasons with the Sacramento Kings, even while playing some power forward for a team that was clearly out of sorts. His last playoff appearance came in 2022 with the Chicago Bulls, but his scoring touch, experience, and leadership should still matter for Denver.
The bigger issue is that this may only be a short-term answer. The Nuggets don’t currently have a young shot creator on the roster who can make plays for himself or others and swing a playoff series.
Given the summer market and the team’s financial position, though, Denver didn’t have many alternatives. For now, DeRozan looks like a way to steady the offense while the franchise searches for a longer-term fix.
In Other News...
Peyton Watson Opened Up About A Brutal Michael Malone Lesson
Peyton Watsons time in Denver came with the kind of hard-edged coaching that can stick with a young player long after the practice ends. In a recent interview with Michael Porter Jr., Watson revisited a rookie-season moment when Michael Malone called him out in front of the team, a scene Watson said was embarrassing at the time but ended up becoming part of his early education in the NBA.
Watson, who was recently sent to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a sign-and-trade deal from the Nuggets, said the lesson forced him to sharpen his attention to detail and deepen his understanding of the game plan. Porter Jr. echoed that sentiment as they looked back on Malones style, suggesting the Nuggets coachs blunt approach was difficult in the moment but also a big reason young players in Denver kept growing. [Read more 🡒]
LaVar Ball Just Gave Nuggets Fans A New Jokic Debate
LaVar Ball has managed to give Nuggets fans another reason to argue about Nikola Jokic, even if the debate starts from a place that feels pretty far removed from Denvers reality. On his show, Ball said Jokic would not be a fit in his preferred fast-paced system, arguing that the reigning centerpiece in Denver is not the kind of athletic big man he wants running the floor and finishing above the rim. He did acknowledge Jokics talent, but made it clear his idea of how basketball should look leaves little room for a player built like the Nuggets star.
For Denver, the more interesting part is how upside-down that critique sounds when measured against the way Jokic actually plays. His game is built less on sprinting for lobs than on rebounding, vision and passing that can turn a defensive stop into a quick strike before most teams are set. That contrast is why Balls comments land as more than just a hot take, because they reopen the same old question about whether the best offense is the one that looks fastest or the one that keeps finding Jokic in the middle of everything. [Read more 🡒]
Nuggets Fans Just Got A New Reason To Question Ownership Priorities
Stan Kroenkes sports empire is getting even bigger, and Nuggets fans have another reason to wonder how ownership chooses where to spend. Kroenke Sports & Entertainment has agreed to buy controlling interest in the Los Angeles Angels from Arte Moreno, a deal reported at a MLB-record price north of $3.9 billion, adding another major franchise to a portfolio that already includes Denvers NBA team.
For Nuggets supporters, the timing is hard to ignore because the conversation around the roster has already shifted toward restraint and cost management. Denvers recent trade of Peyton Watson to the Cleveland Cavaliers only sharpened that focus, with luxury tax considerations hanging over every move and the team already operating under the pressure of the second apron. The question now is whether a growing sports empire means more flexibility or just a clearer line between where the money goes and where it does not. [Read more 🡒]