Nuggets PG Jamal Murray climbs another mountain, wins an ESPY

Jamal Murray won an NBA championship last month and now he can add an ESPY to his trophy case.

The Denver Nuggets star won the award for “Best Comeback Athlete” on Wednesday night, besting Jon Jones of the UFC, Alyssa Thomas of the Connecticut Sun and Justin Verlander of the Mets and formerly the Astros.

The comeback that led to a championship 🏆

Jamal Murray wins the ESPY for Best Comeback Player! pic.twitter.com/woI3660mug

— ESPN (@espn) July 13, 2023

Murray missed 18 months of basketball after tearing his ACL in April of 2021 against the Warriors, including two postseason runs. The Nuggets lost to the Suns in Round 2 in ’21 without him and Golden State in Round 1 in 2022 while he watched from the bench.

But the long rehab and wait was all worth it for Murray, as he had a very solid 2022-2023 campaign, followed by an electric postseason. He even posted a triple-double in the NBA Finals against the Heat, along with center Nikola Jokic, the first duo of teammates to ever accomplish that.

Murray had three games of 30 or more points against the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals and two against the Suns and the Timberwolves. He scored 40 against Minnesota in Game 2 back on April 19.

Canadian, Jamal Murray wins the ESPY for Best Comeback Player!🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/Hp52m4E5nb

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) July 13, 2023

It’s awesome to see for Murray and another great piece of national recognition for a young man who went through some crazy ups and downs over the last 27 months.

Congratulations to him on yet another big honor.

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