Jamal Murray scored a career-high 48 points, making NBA history in the process—but his night might be best remembered for what happened after the final buzzer.
With the outcome of the game already decided, the Denver Nuggets guard attempted to sink a three as time expired in a bid to reach the 50-point mark. The move, however, left Kyrie Irving nonplussed and the Boston Celtics point guard fired the ball into the stands after Murray's shot had missed the target.
"The ball deserves to go in the crowd after a bull***t move like that," Irving was quoted as saying by ESPN after the game.
"So I threw it in the crowd."
For his part, Murray admitted his gesture had been ill-advised and immediately apologized.
"No disrespect to the Boston organization and fans with that shot [...] I just had in my mind that I was going to go 50, and I think everybody kind of understood that was what I was trying to do," he said.
"I really wasn't meaning no disrespect."
The incident, however, could not take the shine off a superb performance from the 21-year-old, who inspired the Nuggets to a 115-107 win over the Celtics as Denver moved to 9-1.
Murray shot 19-for-30 from the field, including 5-for-11 from beyond the arc as he notched up the highest ever point tally in NBA history by a player born in Canada.
His 48 points surpassed the record Andrew Wiggins set in November 2016, when the Minnesota Timberwolves small forward became the first Canadian player to score 40 or more points, as he landed 47 in a win against the Los Angeles Lakers.
While Murray's attempted three-pointer clearly annoyed him, Irving, who went 13-for-17 from the field for 31 points, paid tribute to the seventh-overall pick of the 2016 draft.
"I don't want to make a big deal out of it," he added.
"Obviously I was pissed at the game, but it's time to decompress and move on. Congratulations to him having 48 points. He did it in a great fashion against us ."
Murray has history when it comes to landing himself in controversy in the closing stages of a game. In December last year, with the Nuggets 115-100 against the Lakers, he dribbled up the court and around LA guard Lonzo Ball.
Later in the season, after making two free throws towards the end of a 125-116 against the same opponent, Murray then exchanged words with then-Lakers guard Isaiah Thomas.
Following the win on Monday night, the former Kentucky student looked back at the incidents against the Lakers admitted emotions had had the better of him again.
"Everybody knew I was trying to go for 50 at that point," he explained.
"That was the problem. I didn't mean no disrespect. My emotions just took over like it did with the Lakers last year.
"I just lose myself sometimes."
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Dan Cancian is currently a reporter for Newsweek based in London, England. Prior to joining Newsweek in January 2018, he ... Read more
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