How Jamal Murray Benefits From Luka Doncic, Anthony Edwards Injuries

With a group of NBA stars ineligible for All-NBA, Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray could make the most of it.

Mar 5, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) controls the ball against Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) as guard Christian Braun (0) defends in the first quarter at Ball Arena. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

The NBA's 65-game threshold for end-of-season awards has certainly been a hot topic of discussion recently, with Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards both expected to miss the cut.

Doncic and Edwards join a long list of stars who will be ineligible for awards like MVP and All-NBA, alongside LeBron James, Steph Curry, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Cade Cunningham, Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis, and more. While this is bad news for those stars, other stars across the league could benefit.

Luka Doncic has played 64 games and could become ineligible for NBA end of season awards depending on the severity of his left hamstring injury.

Doncic needs to play ONE more game to be eligible, with only five regular season games left on the schedule 😬 pic.twitter.com/oSucAWHpmt

— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) April 3, 2026

Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray could be one of the players to come out of this injury-ridden NBA season on top. After earning his first All-Star appearance, Murray could also be marching toward his first career All-NBA honors as well.

How Murray fits into the new-look All-NBA teams

Mar 27, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) after making a three-pointer during the first half against the Utah Jazz at Ball Arena. | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

Even without all of these stars ineligible for All-NBA, Murray seems like a lock for All-NBA Third Team honors. However, with guys like Doncic and Edwards becoming ineligible, Murray could even boost himself up to the second team.

As of right now, the All-NBA First Team will likely be Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, and Victor Wembanyama, with two of Donovan Mitchell, Kawhi Leonard, and Jaylen Brown to round it out. Then, there will be a mix of players competing for the second team, headlined by Tyrese Maxey, Jalen Johnson, Jalen Brunson, and Kevin Durant.

Where does Murray fit into all of this? At worst, he will be one of the top players on the All-NBA Third Team, but he might have a case among the second team stars.

This season, Murray is averaging 25.6 points (12th in NBA) and 7.1 assists (11th in NBA) per game, while knocking down 3.3 three-pointers per game (8th in NBA) on a 43.4% clip (6th in NBA). Murray has proven to be one of the best players in the league this season, and with some of the "elite" players injured and ineligible, there is no reason why he should not be considered for the All-NBA Second Team.

Jamal Murray is the only player this season to have multiple games with 10+ threes made. pic.twitter.com/7otdexO8hg

— Real App (@realapp) April 2, 2026

Of course, it is always unfortunate when players across the league are getting injured, especially at this season's rate. The NBA is a much better product when the stars are healthy, and there will likely be some reform about this 65-game threshold after this season, but Murray could be one of the players to make the most of the opportunity given to him.

After eight seasons of no recognition from the NBA, Murray has done everything he can to earn All-Star and All-NBA honors this year. Even if he lands on the All-NBA Third Team, that is still a huge and well-deserved accomplishment for the 29-year-old Canadian guard.

Sign up for our free Denver Nuggets On SI newsletter, and get breaking Nuggets news delivered to your inbox daily!