In the absence of the three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, the Boston Celtics devised a clear, aggressive plan: turn the Denver Nuggets’ offense into a two-on-one game. They would hound Jamal Murray with double-teams, trap every pick-and-roll, and force the ball out of the star guard’s hands, daring his supporting cast to beat them. On Wednesday night at TD Garden, Jamal Murray didn’t just accept that challenge—he orchestrated a breathtaking, career-high 17-assist symphony that systematically and surgically picked the Celtics’ defensive scheme apart, leading Denver to a 115-109 victory.
Denver Nuggets v Boston Celtics
The strategy from Head Coach Joe Mazzulla was transparent and logical. Without Jokic, Murray is Denver’s unequivocal offensive engine. Boston sought to overload him, deploying aggressive coverages designed to induce discomfort and turnovers.
“Murray, you’ve got to give credit to him,” Mazzulla admitted post-game. “It was a two-on-one for the majority of the game, and they took advantage of that.”
Payton Pritchard summarized the inherent risk: “When you [send] a double team, and they make the right pass out of it, you’re always gonna be at a disadvantage.” The Celtics gambled that Denver’s role players would fail to convert. It was a bet they lost spectacularly.
Facing relentless pressure, Murray played with transcendent calm and vision. He wasn’t just passing out of doubles; he was diagnosing and exploiting them with clinical precision. He finished with 22 points, 8 rebounds, and those 17 assists against only 2 turnovers—a masterclass in high-stakes playmaking.
“He’s a really good player, and he made the right read a lot tonight,” said Derrick White. The stats underscore his dominance: from the 7:26 mark to 1:18 in the fourth quarter, with the game in the balance, the Nuggets outscored Boston 22-8. Murray had a direct hand—via assist or score—in every single one of those points, racking up six assists in that decisive six-minute stretch alone.
Jamal Murray
Murray’s masterpiece required a chorus, and Denver’s role players delivered a flawless performance. The Celtics’ strategy lived and died by the three-point shot, and the Nuggets executed a 45.5% (20-of-44) shooting clinic from deep.
Peyton Watson: Erupted for a career-high 30 points, draining 6-of-7 from three-point range.
Tim Hardaway Jr.: Provided crucial spacing, hitting 4-of-8 from downtown.
DaRon Holmes II & Others: Hit timely shots, ensuring the floor remained stretched and every double-team on Murray was punished.
As Jaylen Brown conceded, “I thought our defense did its job, but they had a good shooting night.” In reality, the defense did its intended job—it got the ball out of Murray’s hands. The fatal flaw was assuming that was enough.
This game serves as a stark lesson in the evolution of NBA offense. In an era of elite spacing and skilled players, simply forcing the ball from a primary creator is no longer a viable defensive strategy unless the surrounding shooters are incompetent. Denver, even without Jokic, is a well-oiled machine of movement and shooting.
The Celtics’ “two-on-one” plan succeeded in its immediate goal but failed in its ultimate objective. They forced Murray to be a passer, and he responded by becoming perhaps the game’s premier passer for a night. Boston’s rotations and closeouts were a step slow, a fatal margin against a team capitalizing on every advantage.
Jamal Murray didn’t just have a great game; he authored a tactical dismantling. He turned Boston’s defensive aggression into Denver’s offensive fuel, proving that against a prepared and skilled team, a double-team is not a stop but an invitation to a more efficient shot. The Celtics wanted anyone but Murray to beat them. On Wednesday, he obliged—not by forcing shots, but by elevating everyone around him, conducting a performance that solidified his place among the league’s elite floor generals and left a top-tier defense searching for answers.