In an encouraging turn of events for Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets, star guard Jamal Murray is taking a significant step in his bid to return from ACL injury.

According to Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports, Murray will practice with the Nuggets' G League affiliate–the Grand Rapids Gold–on Wednesday before returning to Denver. He has been assigned to the Gold on Tuesday, a move which the team hopes will give them a good idea on the guard's conditioning and overall status before deciding on the next steps for him.

That doesn't mean Murray will be able to play soon for the Nuggets, but if he produces positive results, it would be a step in the right direction for his NBA comeback bid.

Jamal Murray has been sidelined for the Nuggets for 11 months now. He suffered a left ACL injury in April of 2021 and has been recovering ever since then.

Earlier in the season, there were high hopes that Murray would be able to play today. Unfortunately, the Nuggets have been largely mum on disclosing his current status–perhaps doing so in order to not put a lot of pressure on him.

Recent speculations highlighted that the 25-year-old scorer is 50-50 in returning this season, which was definitely not what Nuggets fans wanted to hear. Hopefully, his G League stint will produce better results.

The Nuggets are staying afloat the West behind Nikola Jokic's efforts, but everyone knows he can't do it alone come playoff time. Should Murray be able to return alongside Michael Porter Jr., Denver's playoff chances will certainly shot up. But for now, that remains a big question mark for Denver and all they can do is wait to get an answer.