NBA Finals MVP 2023: Jamal Murray odds, stats, path to award ahead of series

The 2023 NBA Finals matchup is officially set with the Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat facing off in Game 1 on Thursday, June 1. This year's head-to-head features history on both sides, as the Nuggets make their first appearance in the Finals while the Heat become just the second No. 8 seed to come out of their conference.

We're going to break down the prominent players in this series on both teams and look at how they'll impact the matchup. Here's a look at Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray.

Jamal Murray 2023 NBA playoffs overview

Postseason stats: 27.7 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 6.1 APG, 48.0 FG%, 39.8 3P%

Murray finished as the Nuggets' second-leading scorer, behind only Nikola Jokic (29.9 PPG) while ranking fifth among all postseason players in three-point field goals made (47). Amid his return from taking all of last season off to rehab his knee, Murray increased his playoff scoring total from 2019 (21.1 PPG) and 2020 (26.5), which is an admirable feat considering the latter came during a Western Conference Finals run in the bubble.

Odds entering NBA Finals (via DraftKings Sportsbook)

Finals MVP: +2000
Scoring leader: +250
Rebounding leader: +10000
Assists leader: +1700
3PM leader: -175

How Jamal Murray can win Finals MVP

Interestingly enough, if the Nuggets beat the Heat to win the NBA Finals then the greatest obstacle standing in Murray's way of a Finals MVP is arguably his own teammate in Jokic. The latter is averaging a triple-double in the postseason and if he achieves the same feat in the Finals, then Murray will need to put on an emphatic scoring performance coupled with a sizable impact from shooting beyond the arc.

Perhaps the closest barometer is the 2018 NBA Finals in which Kevin Durant (28.8 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 7.5 APG) won Finals MVP over Stephen Curry (27.5 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 6.8 APG). In a neck-and-neck race, it came down to Durant having the more consistent series over Curry, who struggled in Game 3 (3-16 shooting).

If Murray consistently posts scoring totals of 30-plus points in the Finals, then a case could be made for him winning the hardware over Jokic.

  
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