Just nine more points, and Jamal Murray would have averaged ten points per game on the year. He would have joined elite company in terms of 2016 draftees who did the same: Buddy Hield and Malcolm Brogdon. That’s actually not very elite company but it is when compared to the rest of the scrubbusts (that’s scrubs and busts combined) that got drafted around him.
Nine points doesn’t seem like a lot, but Murray already was taking about as many shots as he could. To get to the coveted 10.0 PPG mark, he would have had to start earlier, possibly by scoring one more point in each of his previous nine games. To me, this is evidence that he wasn’t trying hard enough. Scoring one more point per game is super easy. Anybody could do it. All you have to do is get fouled one more time and make a free throw. You don’t even have to make two free throws. It’s easy.
Murray won’t win ROTY of the year but the good news is, he’ll probably replace Mudiay and Jameer Nelson next year as the full-time point guard. Murray + Harris + Jokic + some other dudes? Not gonna lie, I’m a little bit jealous.