Jamal Murray’s hamstring tightness is kind of injury that “can stick around for a while,” Michael Malone says.
“We have to be smart about it,” Malone said after the Nuggets completed a back-to-back but lost Jamal Murray to an injury along the way.
Murray has appeared in the team’s first six games, averaging 18.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 8.7 assists per game while shooting 43.6% from the field and 43.8% from three-point range.
The Nuggets are 5-1 in their first six games, most recently defeating the Dallas Mavericks 125-114 at home on Friday.
Murray had 18 points, two rebounds, 13 assists, and one steal in 39 minutes while shooting 5/15 from the field and 2/6 from three-point range.
Murray is entering his ninth NBA season (all with the Nuggets) and is coming off a season in which he averaged 20.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 6.2 assists, and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 45.4% from the field and 39.8% from three-point range in 65 games.
The Nuggets were the #1 seed in the Western Conference and defeated the Miami Heat in the 2023 NBA Championship.
Murray played only 10 minutes due to a hamstring issue and finished with two points and two rebounds.
For Chicago, Nikola Vucevic had 19 points, DeMar DeRozan had 17, Jevon Carter had 16, Zach LaVine had 12, and Coby White had 11.
The Bulls, who won their last game at Denver, led at halftime 53-51. They took the lead with nine consecutive points midway through the second quarter, but the Nuggets came out strong in the third.
In the first 70 seconds, Porter scored a three-point play, Gordon hit two free throws, and Caldwell-Pope hit a three-pointer.
DeRozan ended the run with a mid-range jumper, but Denver scored the next 10 points to take a 14-point lead. Vucevic made a shot, but Jokic had a three-point play and two layups to put the Nuggets up 79-61 with 4:31 remaining.
Chicago had closed to within 86-74 entering the fourth period, and Andre Drummond’s tip-in to start the final stanza made it a 10-point game. Denver took a 92-76 lead after Porter and Jackson hit consecutive 3-pointers.
Torrey Craig’s three-point play and Carter’s fourth 3-pointer of the game brought the Bulls within 101-90 with eight minutes remaining.
Jokic then made two consecutive baskets, Porter and Gordon nailed back-to-back 3-pointers, and Porter drained his fifth 3-pointer of the night to put the Nuggets up 114-94.
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