Jamal Murray doesn’t want to rest. After all, he still had it after the defending champions Denver Nuggets blew a 20-point lead in Game 7 against Minnesota last Sunday (5/19) and were prematurely eliminated from the playoffs in the NBA. The Olympics await.
He wants to continue fighting despite a nagging calf injury, but he will benefit from time off. He will then prepare for a busy summer representing Canada at the Summer Games, which begin in Paris at the end of July.
Murray confirmed that he plans to compete in the Olympics and that his calf won’t stop him from taking action in less than two months.
“I need to rest now, then,” he said in a low voice.
When asked again if he was sure about playing, he simply nodded.
If Denver made it to the NBA Finals, Murray would only have a few weeks to prepare. He now has one more month left.
Of course, that’s not a good thing for a team that had its sights set on winning back-to-back championships and ended up with just nine postseason wins.
Murray spent the entire playoffs questionable due to a calf injury, then added problems to his right elbow in Game 6 against the Timberwolves.
The Toronto native played in 59 regular-season games, missing a month earlier in the season with a strained right hamstring, then missing seven more games with a sprained ankle.
“He played a really long season last year and got hurt again this year,” second-year player Christian Braun said of Murray. “If you look at how many people had calf injuries in the playoffs, a lot of them were out. Jamal wasn’t. He played a lot and played a lot today. He played very well, bounced back after game six and played really well.”
Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic was evasive when asked about the Olympics and playing for Serbia after Sunday’s loss in Denver.
“I don’t know, my friend, we’ll see,” he said. “I need to think about it.”
Article Tag: Olympic Games
“Social media fanatic. Problem solver. Bacon ninja. Communicator. Alcohol evangelist.”
