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Jamal Murray suffered a torn ACL in April of 2021 and has been sidelined ever since. He underwent surgery shortly after the injury to repair the tear, but he hasn’t been able to make it back into the mix, missing the entire 2021-22 regular season.
Regardless, the Denver Nuggets have stayed a playoff contender all season long on the shoulders of reigning MVP Nikola Jokic, booking a spot in the postseason despite missing players like Murray and Michael Porter, Jr.
Jamal Murray injury updates
April 13 - Head coach Mike Malone considers Murray doubtful for the team’s series against the Warriors in the first round. Nuggets president Tim Connelly is a bit more optimistic about Murray’s chances to return, but the guard’s injury hurdle is still significant.
Jamal Murray would be right around the 12 month mark after ACL surgery if he were to play in this series. Would be hard to imagine how impactful he could be jumping right into a 1st round playoff series when it can take nearly 1.5 - 2 years post surgery to regain performance. https://t.co/I7dHnCv6gg
— Dr. Nirav Pandya, M.D. (@DrNiravPandya) April 13, 2022
While there have been plenty of rumors and lots of speculation surrounding Murray’s return date, the short of it is that nobody really knows. In February, it looked like he was set to make his way back onto the court in time for the playoffs. Just a month later, Nuggets coach Michael Malone said that Jamal Murray is “not close” to playing in any of the games, as reported by Mike Singer of the Denver Post.
For now, it looks like Murray is on a day-to-day basis. The Nuggets won’t want to rush his recovery and risk yet another injury, as they’ll expect him to be fully healthy ahead of the 2022-23 season.