Jamal Murray Had Historically Poor Playoff Performance vs. Timberwolves

While the Denver Nuggets are moving on to the offseason, many fans are still stuck on what went wrong in their first-round playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Despite being favorites to advance to the second round, and even among the top-five favorites to win the NBA Finals, they fell well short, losing to the Timberwolves 4-2.

As a team, the Nuggets struggled immensely. They had the NBA's top offense through the regular season, yet they collapsed when it mattered most, scoring less than 100 points in three of their six games. Leading the poor shooting charge for Denver was Jamal Murray, who is typically a playoff riser, but could not get it going against Minnesota.

Murray became just the second All-Star in NBA history to shoot 36% or worse from the field and 27% or worse from three-point range in a single playoff run (min. 6 games), joining Jason Kidd, who did so in the 2004 postseason, per Stathead.

Apr 27, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) in the first quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves during game five of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Ball Arena. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Murray finished the series averaging 23.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.7 assists per game, while shooting a mere 35.7% from the field and 26.2% from three-point range. In the Nuggets' season-ending Game 6 loss, he was at his worst. Murray finished the closeout game with 12 points on 4-7 shooting from the field and 0-2 from beyond the arc.

Murray lets down the Nuggets

Granted, the Timberwolves' defense deserves most of the credit. Jaden McDaniels, especially, did an incredible job on Murray throughout the series. Similar to how Rudy Gobert was able to slow down Nikola Jokic, Minnesota's defense as a whole won the series.

Murray's expectations were as high as ever heading into this playoff run as a first-time All-Star and likely All-NBA honoree, but it turned out to be one of the worst playoff series of his career.

Jamal Murray in Game 6 loss at Wolves:

12 PTS
4-17 FG
0-2 3PT
-18 rating

No other Nugget was worse than -9. pic.twitter.com/9tzTMXrgxJ
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) May 1, 2026

When the Nuggets' offense could not get it going, they desperately needed their stars to step up. Unfortunately, the entire team was cold, and they were ultimately sent home much earlier than anyone expected.

Murray takes the blame

Of course, Murray knew he did not perform up to standard. After the Game 6 loss, the star guard talked about how he needed to be better.

"It's just on me. I think I've made, and you guys have seen me make enough shots and get to my spots, but just unable to convert. That's the frustrating part. They're playing good defense. All these guys are playing physical, trying to chase me around. When I get the looks I need, they don't go down. That's the frustrating part. Not showing up when my team needed me most. ... I'll take accountability for it."

“I feel like if I would have played a little better, we would have had that game”

Jamal Murray takes accountability for his game tonight ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/Yto7NeSV52
— AltitudeTV (@AltitudeTV) May 1, 2026

After a disastrous series, some fans were quick to start calling for Murray to be traded. Of course, that is a huge overreaction, especially after he had the best regular season of his career. The Timberwolves were simply the worst matchup for this Nuggets team, and Murray could not get it going against Minnesota's length, athleticism, physicality, and on-ball prowess.

While the Nuggets are expected to make some roster changes this summer, Murray should stay put, regardless of the historically poor shooting performance he just had.

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