The semifinal series, which started as a one-sided affair, spun into a thriller within a few days. The Denver Nuggets are set to take on the Minnesota Timberwolves in a series decider at the Ball Arena tonight, for a berth in the Conference Finals. Nikola Jokić along with Jamal Murray have a do-or-die game in front to defend their title against dominant Wolves, anchored by Anthony Edwards.

Heading into Game 7, the Nuggets may face a massive setback involving their star guard Jamal Murray. The availability of the 27-year-old remains uncertain after his embarrassing Game 6 performance. The team listed him in the Questionable category on account of his left calf strain. Murray has been struggling with his calf injury for over a month, which also has impacted his performance as well.

He hasn’t had a great postseason this year except for his clutch brilliance against the LA Lakers in the first round. The Nuggets sent the LA side home with a dominant 4-1 record. However, out of those two wins, LeBron James & Co. almost two of their games if not for Murray’s two game-winning daggers.

However, in the ongoing series, he has only managed to record 15.7 points with a high score of 24 points. Importantly, on this stretch, he had two embarrassing outings when he managed to shoot at 16.7% and 22% from the field during Game 2 and Game 6, and eventually ended up losing both games.

On the other hand, Jamal Murray has made the necessary difference in the Nuggets lineup throughout his career. In the star’s absence, the Nuggets have managed to have a 5-10 record in the playoffs. Especially, when the star sustained a grave ACL tear in 2021, the team couldn’t make it big despite the availability of the MVP Nikola Jokić. But, as soon as he returned to the roster in the 2022-23 season, the team managed to win the title for the first time in their history.

Can the Nuggets weather the storm without Jamal Murray? – Starting lineup & Depth chart

If Jamal Murray doesn’t suit up for the crucial series decider, Nikola Jokić will be left short-handed to carry the team to defend the title. On the other hand, the Wolves powered by Anthony Edwards are raring to prove themselves on the big stage. With Bubble Murray more than likely to miss the game tonight, Reggie Jackson could play the point guard role as per the Nuggets depth chart. Jackson has played an average of 10 minutes per game in this series, scoring 4.3 points per game.

Reggie Jackson has had a tough season overall, hiding in the shadows of the dominant Nuggets starting lineup. Despite that, he had proven his talent whenever he came off the bench, averaging 10.2 points. In this regular season, Jackson started the game in 23 games, averaging 15.4 points and 5.3 assists. Now that Jackson might take over Murray’s spot in the starting lineup, the Nuggets starting line may look like this: Reggie Jackson, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon, and Nikola Jokić.