The Nuggets endured a crushing 106-80 defeat against the Timberwolves on Monday, and Denver guard Jamal Murray let his emotions get the best of him during the game.
Murray boiled over while sitting on the bench in the first half of Game 2 of the Western Conference playoff series. The Nuggets allowed Minnesota to corral an offensive rebound to set up an easy Karl-Anthony Towns layup while facing a massive deficit.
That was enough to prompt Murray to hurl a heating pack he was using from the sideline and onto the floor. It whistled past an official on the sideline before sliding across the floor and hitting a couple of players lightly on the foot.
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Here’s a look at Murray’s throw and where the heat pack landed:
Jamal Murray throws a heat pack pic.twitter.com/JDADMojQgp
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) May 7, 2024
The Nuggets bench throwing stuff on the court? pic.twitter.com/bnvfYIZrO9
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) May 7, 2024
Murray’s throw went unnoticed by most when it happened. Neither coach saw the throw live, and Nuggets coach Mike Malone was surprised to hear about the incident after the game.
“I wasn’t aware of that,” Malone said of Murray’s toss, per the Twin Cities Pioneer Press. “But if that’s the case, we’ll have to see what happens (with discipline).”
Here’s what we know about Murray’s status and availability as Denver faces a 2-0 series deficit.
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Will Jamal Murray be suspended by NBA for throwing heat pack?
The NBA will not suspend Murray for Game 3. Instead, he will pay a hefty $100,000 fine for “throwing multiple objects in the direction of a game official during live play.”
The following was released by the NBA: pic.twitter.com/MlbHrJ3qtQ
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 7, 2024
When looking at other similar offenses, the NBA has tended to exercise its option to fine players.
Notably, Stephen Curry has been fined $25,000 multiple times for throwing his mouthpiece into the stands during a game. Meanwhile, Heat center Dewayne Dedmon was once ejected for throwing a massage gun onto the court, but he didn’t miss any additional game time because of a suspension.
As such, Murray is lucky he didn’t get caught. If he did, he may have been ejected. And at a minimum, he would have been whistled for a technical foul.
It’s also worth noting that crew chief Mark Davis indicated after the game that Murray may only have received a technical foul in-game had the officials reviewed the play for a “hostile act” call.
“For an ejection you would have to determine it was thrown directly at somebody versus thrown in frustration,” Davis said, per the Twin Cities Pioneer Press.
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch hoped Murray’s actions during the contest would have been addressed.
“It’s inexcusable and dangerous,” Finch said about the throw. “Certainly can’t allow that to happen.”
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Jamal Murray suspension history
Murray has never been suspended during his eight-year NBA career to date. He has only been ejected twice, once in 2021 for striking Tim Hardaway Jr. in the groin area against the Mavericks and once in 2023 after picking up two technicals against the Rockets.
Prior to this $100,000 fine, Murray had only been dinged one other time in his career. He picked up a $25,000 fine for hitting Hardaway, but that was the only time he had been fined during his career — outside of the standard $2,000 fine for picking up a technical foul.
Jamal Murray was ejected after this play on Tim Hardaway Jr. pic.twitter.com/VtxEXAoQDN
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 26, 2021
Murray has logged 15 technical fouls during his career.
Biggest fines in NBA history
Murray’s $100,000 fine isn’t close to the highest in NBA history, but it matches Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert for the biggest penalty issued by the NBA this season.
Gobert was fined $100,000 in March for making a money sign gesture at the referees, suggesting they were being paid to fix the game.
The biggest fine in NBA history belongs to former Suns owner Robert Sarver, who was hit for $10 million in 2022 for “several different issues relating to the team’s workplace.” Sarver’s racism and inappropriate conduct toward female employees eventually led to him selling the Suns.
You can find the list of the biggest fines in NBA history below.
Rank Person Role Year Fine Reason 1. Robert Sarver Former Suns owner 2022 $10 million Several different issues relating to the team’s workplace 2. Timberwolves — 2000 $3.5 million Secret contract negotiations 3. Donald Sterling Former Clippers owner 2014 $2.5 million Racism 4. Mark Cuban Mavericks owner 2018 $600,000 Admitting to tanking 5. Five tied — — $500,000 —
Jamal Murray contract
Even though a $100,000 fine is significant, that is just a tiny portion of what Murray makes.
The Nuggets star guard signed a five-year, $158.3 million max contract extension back in 2019. He is eligible for another lucrative extension this offseason with 2024-25 being the final season of his current deal.
You can find Murray’s contract below, courtesy of Spotrac:
Year Age Salary 2020-21 23 $27.3 million 2021-22 24 $29.5 million 2022-23 25 $31.7 million 2023-24 26 $33.8 million 2024-25 27 $36 million 2025-26 28 UFA
Nuggets vs. Timberwolves schedule, scores, results
Game Date Site Time (ET) TV Channel/Result 1 Sat., May 4 at Denver FINAL Timberwolves 106, Nuggets 99 2 Mon., May 6 at Denver FINAL Timberwolves 106, Nuggets 80 3 Fri., May 10 at Minnesota 9:30 p.m. ESPN, Sling 4 Sun., May 12 at Minnesota 8 p.m. TNT, Sling 5* Tue., May 14 at Denver TBD TNT, Sling 6* Thu., May 16 at Minnesota 8:30 p.m. ESPN, Sling 7* Sun., May 19 at Denver TBD TBD
* – if necessary
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