The Nuggets waited four months to get their starting lineup healthy. On its first night back together, it didn’t last half of the game. Jamal Murray was helped off the court during the second quarter of Denver’s 142-103 loss to the Knicks on Friday. The All-Star point guard sprained his left ank le, the team announced, after stepping on Nikola Jokic’s foot while backpedaling on defense. Murray limped to the locker room after he was helped off the court by teammates Peyton Watson and Jonas Valanciunas. He didn’t return to the game. “They’re gonna check on it tomorrow,” coach David Adelman said. “It’s really sore. You guys all know Jamal. When he sprains his ankle, he usually comes back and plays.” Nuggets shooting guard Christian Braun missed 37 games earlier this season with a severe ankle sprain with torn ligaments. Multiple Nuggets sources were cautiously optimistic after the game Friday that Murray had suffered a more mild sprain, but the team was still waiting to get more thorough test results over the weekend, one source said. “It sucks to see him go down,” Braun said. “But just for the team, it felt like we got all the guys back, and pregame I thought our vibe was really good. We were excited to see AG get back and the starting lineup play together again. And it seems like we played, what, 12 minutes? Or whatever it was together. So it sucks for ‘Mal. It sucks to watch.” “This has just been insane,” Adelman said. “Every time we get somebody back, I feel like that game, somebody else goes out.” Murray, 29, is averaging 25.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game. He appeared in his first All-Star Game this February and was shooting 43.2% from 3-point range entering Friday’s game. The Nuggets had their original starting five on the court together for the first time since last Nov. 12, when Braun suffered his ankle injury. Aaron Gordon was returning from a hamstring strain that had sidelined him for the last 17 games. Cam Johnson was back after a minor ankle tweak last weekend. “I think this is the first time in a long time that we kind of quit,” Jokic said. “Maybe not quit. But they were just better than us. They had better energy. Of course, Jamal got hurt. That didn’t help us. Hopefully it’s just that kind of game.” Related Articles Nuggets thrilled as Aaron Gordon returns from hamstring injury Will any Nuggets win awards this season? Here are Denver’s top candidates | Journal Nikola Jokic, Nuggets survive Lakers’ late rally without top four forwards available Is Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic too worried about refs? David Adelman: ‘Nobody’s being guarded like him’ Nuggets unmoved by Lu Dort’s comments on tripping Nikola Jokic: A ‘cheap shot’ Adelman said the letdown from Murray’s injury had “nothing to do with why we got our (butt) kicked” in the loss, which tied Denver’s worst home outcome by point differential (39) in franchise history. The Nuggets (39-25) missed 32 of their 40 attempts beyond the arc, struggled at the free throw line, lost loose balls and failed to contain the Knicks on the glass. “It was just because guys let go of it. They didn’t compete,” Adelman said. “I’d say from three minutes to go in the third quarter to all the way through the fourth, outside of DaRon Holmes, I’d say nobody really competed. So you don’t have to call a timeout. You just let it play out. And that’s what happens in professional basketball. … They played well, and we sucked.” Want more Nuggets news? Sign up for the Nuggets Insider to get all our NBA analysis. ...read more read less