Jamal Murray ejected against Mavericks for unnecessary and excessive contact with Tim Hardaway Jr.’s groin

Jamal Murray was playing one of his best games of the season as his Denver Nuggets faced the Dallas Mavericks on Monday. He had seven of his first 11 shots for 16 points, with three rebounds and two assists as his Nuggets built a seven-point lead against the Mavericks, but was sent off for a somewhat unusual foul.

The game came in the third quarter. Tim Hardaway Jr. had just made a point shot and kept Murray on the other end. Murray slammed into Hardaway and fell to the ground. When he got up he appeared to hit Hardaway in the groin and was quickly thrown out. The referees defined blatant foul-2 as “unnecessary and excessive contact” with Hardaway’s groin.

Denver managed to hang on to the wing against Dallas, but the story of the game was Murray’s ejection. While players are sometimes inadvertently hit in this area, you rarely see a blatant-2 appeal rated for such a game. The closest major moment that comes to mind is when Draymond Green hits LeBron James in the groin in Game 4 of the 2016 NBA Finals. This game was only called blatant-1, however, and Green was only suspended because he had racked up so many blatant fouls that it was mandatory.

Murray probably won’t be suspended for this play, but it will remain one of the most infamous moments of his young career. Groin hits are rare, which makes them memorable.