Hoop dreams do come true with hard work, says Jamal
Denver Nuggets guard brings it back home to Kitchener for ‘pit stop’ and chance to inspire local youth at clinic
KITCHENER — A basketball court in Kitchener might seem like a long way from the NBA. But that’s where anyone’s hoop dreams can start. Just ask Jamal Murray.
Murray, the biggest basketball star Waterloo Region has produced, was back in his hometown Thursday, helping kids learn the game’s fundamentals with some on-court drills at Conestoga College.
Coming off his rookie season with the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, the 20-year-old guard was handing out advice, performing a few dunks and taking about 90 kids through their paces as part of a nation-wide series of clinics with the BMO NBA Courts Across Canada program.
He said he tried to show the kids he’s just a regular guy — and anybody, if they work hard enough, can realize their dreams. Murray’s just happened to be playing in the NBA, a dream he’s had since he was a little boy imitating former Raptors star Vince Carter in his bedroom.
“I just tell them I was just like them,” he said. “I was growing up in Kitchener, practising every day on my playground — and it’s all about how bad you want it.”
The visit was “just a pit stop” for Murray, with little time to hang out in city where he grew up.
He said he’d try to find an open gym somewhere so he could shoot hoops with his dad, Roger Murray, but that’s about all his busy schedule allowed.
“It means a lot to come home, because I don’t get to come home a lot,” he said.
After being selected by Denver with the seventh overall pick in the 2016 draft, Murray had a solid first go-round — averaging of 9.9 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game coming off the bench, while showing flashes of his talent as a gifted scorer.
Murray, who had surgery to repair injuries to his core muscles in the off-season, says the injury hampered his pro start. But he vows he’ll be ready in time for training camp.
“It was a good learning curve for me, and I feel like the second season will be an improvement, now that I’m healthy,” he said. “I’m feeling a lot better than I was before.”
The former Grand River Collegiate Institute star was drafted after his standout season with the University of Kentucky Wildcats, where he made waves as the highest-scoring freshman in school history.
Turning pro was a big adjustment, he said, but he’s settling into life in Denver — a “very quiet, very chill’ town, as he calls it. The biggest challenge has been adapting to the longer NBA season, he said.
“It takes patience. It’s a long season. There’s a lot of opportunities and a lot of things you might not think the coach is looking at,” he said. “Just being consistent and taking care of my body is one of the biggest things.”
Murray also said he hopes he can be an inspiration for the next generation of Canadian players who want to make it to the pros.
“A lot of kids dream about it, and have fans from afar. But when you get to come home and interact with kids, and be up close with them, it means a lot more. That’s why I’m here. I just want to give back.”
Murray learned the game through his Jamaican-born father, a Michael Jordan fan who often brought Murray courtside in a stroller for pickup basketball around Kitchener.
When Murray played hoops locally, there was barely anyone in the stands. After transferring to Orangeville Prep in his final years of high school, he began to get noticed.
Today, he’s recognized almost everywhere he goes, and that’s fine by him.
“I don’t mind it at all,” he said. “With these kids, I just try to have fun with them, and show them the stuff I did coming up.”