Former Los Angeles Lakers guard Nick Young believes that the NBA tried to help Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic by not punishing Jamal Murray during Game 2 of Denver’s playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
So we can throw hot packs on the court and nothing happen but suspended players for less .. they gotta help joker by any means necessary lol
— Nick Young (@NickSwagyPYoung) May 7, 2024
During Game 2, Murray threw a heat pack and towel onto the floor on separate occasions, but he was not ejected from the game.
While the towel ended up only reaching the baseline, the heat pack came all the way onto the floor and into a play before it was tossed back towards Denver’s bench.
Jamal Murray throws a heat pack pic.twitter.com/JDADMojQgp
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) May 7, 2024
Jamal Murray threw a towel onto the court during Game 2 pic.twitter.com/luj2mKryID
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 7, 2024
The actions by Murray were uncalled for, especially since they could have caused an injury to a player if he had slipped on the objects thrown onto the floor.
The NBA could potentially suspend or penalize Murray for his actions ahead of Game 3, but Young doesn’t seem to think that will happen.
The Nuggets, the defending champions in the NBA, are in a tough spot in their second-round series with Minnesota, as they dropped both Games 1 and 2 at home to fall down in the series. Now, Denver has to win at least two games on the road in order to win this series.
Last season, the Nuggets stormed through the playoffs and won their first title in franchise history, but things have not been as easy this postseason.
Denver trailed at halftime in every game in the first round against the Los Angeles Lakers, but it was able to turn things around to win the series in five games.
The Lakers won every first half.
The Nuggets won every second half.
What a series. pic.twitter.com/dfLQMc3tOO
— StatMuse (@statmuse) April 30, 2024
The Nuggets may not be as fortunate against Minnesota, which has held them to less than 100 points in each of the first two games of this series. Defense has been the Timberwolves’ calling card all season long, as they led the league in defensive rating during the regular season.
Some unfair treatment might’ve taken place regarding Murray with the officials at fault for not issuing any discipline during the game for the Nuggets guard’s actions.
For now, fans will have to wait and see if there is any punishment for Murray ahead of Game 3 of the Nuggets-Timberwolves series. That matchup is set to tip off at 9:30 p.m. EST on Friday, May 10.
