A year after Andrew Wiggins, Jamal Murray can ensure Canada’s second consecutive NBA Finals shine

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Jamal Murray and the Denver Nuggets advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time by defeating the Los Angeles Lakers earlier this week.

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Murray, who hails from Kitchener, is the second straight Canadian to reach the NBA Finals and, like Andrew Wiggins (Vaughan) last year, is expected to be a major influence on the series.

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When Golden State defeated Boston in 2022, Wiggins, only the second Canadian ever drafted first, starred with averaging 18.3 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists in the six-game triumph. While Stephen Curry was unanimously the MVP of the Finals, just as Murray’s teammate Nikola Jokic is the leading contender for the title this year, Wiggins has been second in scoring from Golden State in that series, second among both teams’ players in blocks and leading everyone on the rebounds.

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The final delivered by Wiggins was the best ever scored by a Canadian. Tristan Thompson (Brampton) also has a strong record when the stakes are high, averaging 8.6 points and 9 rebounds in 22 games for Cleveland, including a title win over Golden State.

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Given how spectacular he’s been in these playoffs, it’d be a surprise Murray wouldn’t outperform both Wiggins and Thompson when the Nuggets face Miami or Boston starting next week. While Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Hamilton) currently holds the title of Canada’s Best Player (due to his fifth-place MVP pick and his place on the All-NBA First Team), Murray has already made his mark this season and can do so Earn standing as an NBA champion.

Should that happen, Murray would be only the tenth Canadian to achieve the feat. He would join Wiggins, Thompson, Cory Joseph (Pickering, who won with the San Antonio Spurs), Joel Anthony (Montreal, who triumphed with the Miami Heat) and Rick Fox (Toronto native) who averaged 7.6 in the Finals points and 3.4 rebounds scored as part of the Shaquille O’Neal/Kobe Bryant dynasty), Chris Boucher (Montreal, who got a ring but didn’t play for the Raptors this postseason), and backup center Bill Wennington (Montreal, who played for Michael Jordan’s Chicago). Bulls) and Mike Smrek (Welland, who supported Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with the Lakers).

Murray is already joining the much shorter list of Canadian starters making it to the Finals, which includes only Wiggins, Thompson, Anthony, Fox and Winnipeg’s Todd MacCulloch (New Jersey Nets).