After Jamal Murray led all second-year players in scoring with 16.7 points per game in 2017-18, NBA.com’s Jonathan Rosenberg believes the 21-year-old can develop into an All-Star in Year 3.
In making the case for Murray’s budding stardom, Rosenberg identified the already-elite aspects of his game:
Known for his shooting ability, Murray grades as an elite off-ball and one-on-one player. He is also a skilled finisher around the rim, and all of these traits pave the way for him to become the next Canadian-born NBA star.
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The building blocks of Murray’s game have allowed him to develop a specialty of some sorts — an essential go-to move guards need to separate themselves from the pack.
One shot in particular that sets him up for future success is a step back moving toward his strong hand. All-NBA caliber guards need to be able to create off the bounce and hit seemingly impossible shots late in the shot clock to bail their teams out of a jam, and Murray already has this trick in his bag.
After the Nuggets narrowly missed the playoffs on the final night of the 2017-18 season, Murray expressed confidence that he would improve this offseason, saying "I know I'm going to get better this summer. Now, it's about going in there and putting in the work."
If Murray does improve upon his solid performance from last season, he could very well be suiting up as an All-Star come February.
