IN TODAY’s (Manila time) explosive game against the Utah Jazz, Jamal Murray dropped yet another 50-point game.
It was a performance that stunned even Draymond Green, Jeremy Lin, Tristan Thompson, and Steve Nash, who posted various reactions on Twitter.
But in his emotional post-game interview, Murray had in mind a bigger fight.
He found it hard to talk, staring down at the court, seemingly overwhelmed by emotions.
“I just want to win,” he said, fighting back tears. “In life you find things that hold value, things to fight for, and we found something worth fighting for as an NBA, as a collective unit. I use these shoes as a symbol to me to keep fighting all around the world. Like I said, they give me a lot of power to keep fighting.”
Murray had revealed the custom sneakers during media interviews more than a day ago, letting them sit in his chair for two whole minutes.
“How long was that? Two minutes?” he told reporters afterwards. “One person on those shoes had a knee on their neck for eight. You just got to think about that.”
The shoes are a pair of customized adidas Pro Model 2Gs. An image of Breonna Taylor is painted on the lateral panel of his left foot, while a George Floyd painting occupies the same position on his other foot.
In between the brand’s signature Three Stripes are raised fists in pink and black.
Breonna Taylor was a 26-year-old medical worker who was shot by police while sleeping on her bed. Meanwhile, George Floyd’s death — after being knelt on by a police offer in late May — galvanized this year’s Black Lives Matter protests, which eventually led to an unprecedented players’ walkout last week that halted NBA games for two days.
It is not known who designed Murray’s kicks.
The 23-year-old guard last dropped 50 points in Game 4 of the series, though the Nuggets lost that one, 129-127.
The Nuggets and Jazz will face each other in Game 7 on Tuesday night (Wednesday morning in Manila) — the first Game 7 inside the bubble.
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