Jamal Murray Named to NBA All-Star Team For the First Time In His Career

Nuggets star Jamal Murray after almost a decade in the league has finally been named to the NBA All-Star team. The point guard was drafted by the Nuggets in 2016 and has been a key player on the court for the Nuggets for the past nine seasons, being one of their highest scorers and helping the team win their NBA Championship in 2023. 

Murray this season averages 25.5 points per game, 4.4 rebounds, 7.5 assists per game, and has an average field goal percentage of 48.7%. (Source: ESPN) He has had an outstanding performance so far this season, and it has certainly cemented his placement on the All-Star team. 

Murray has outstanding performances like these throughout his career, which has made people wonder why he wasn’t yet named an All-Star. He is finally on this year though, and it will be exciting to see him get to play with many of the other stars from around the league.

While Murray was named to the Western Conference team, the NBA will be running the All-Star game a bit differently this year by separating the players into three teams based on where they were born and holding a mini-tournament. There will be two teams for the U.S. assigned based on the ages of the players with the younger players being on Team Stars and and the older being on Team Stripes. Then, there will be one team for the international players, Team World. The three teams will face off in four 12 minute games: three round-robin games and then one championship game with the two teams that have the best record from the round-robin games. Jamal will be on Team World since he is Canadian. He will be playing with his Nuggets teammate Nikola Jokic and other stars such as Luka Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpo, making for a very strong lineup for Team World. 

Overall, Murray has certainly deserved this spot on the NBA All-Star team for many years and it is exciting that he has finally earned it! You can tune in to watch Murray, Team World, Team Stars, and Team Stripes battle it out on Sunday, February 15th at 3 PM on NBC and Peacock.