Jamal Murray is not close to his season debut with the Nuggets, according to Denver head coach Michael Malone.
Murray has been in the final stage of his recovery from an ACL injury he suffered in April of 2021. Prior to the game vs the Boston Celtics, Denver head coach told reporters that the young guard is not close to rejoining the lineup at the moment.
However, he also noted that this could happen until the end of the regular season. Still, the team hasn’t set any timetable.
“We’ll see if there’s a point of no return within these final 11 games. As of right now, that has not been discussed or determined when that would be,” Malone said, via Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports.
The veteran coach also stated Jamal Murray could rejoin Nuggets’ G-League affiliate, Grand Rapids, for a couple of practices.
Asked Malone if there's a cut-off date for Jamal Murray or Michael Porter Jr.'s return: "We'll see if there's a point of no return within these final 11 games. As of right now, that has not been discussed or determined when that would be." https://t.co/AifjlUcpG3 — Harrison Wind (@HarrisonWind) March 20, 2022
Prior to his injury, Jamal Murray was averaging a career-high 21.2 points (40% from beyond the arc) and 4.8 assists in 48 games played.
For their part, the Nuggets want to be 100% sure that Murray has fully recovered before clearing him to play. There is optimism he will be ready for the last part of the season, as the Nuggets aim for a deep playoff run.
The Nuggets (42-29) are just 0.5 games above seventh-placed Minnesota Timberwolves and want to avoid dropping to the play-in tournament spots.
At the same time, they are just 2.5 games below fourth-placed Utah Jazz (44-26) and want to maintain a top four push.
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