Jamal Murray claimed he didn’t know about Shaq’s pregame challenge after monster 45-point game

Now and then, we get glimpses of the shot-making superstar inside Jamal Murray. A step-back 3-pointer that doesn't even graze the rim. A high floater off the glass after putting someone on skates. A confident mid-range shot from the elbow after posting up a weaker defender.

On Tuesday night, Murray pieced it all together for one of the best games he's played in his entire NBA career. With the Nuggets playing the rival Dallas Mavericks on the road on TNT, Murray dropped a hyper-efficient 45 points on 18-of-26 shooting. He had a 19-point first quarter and a 32-point first half -- a career-high on the latter. No one else who played in the game on either team had more than 13 points.

Murray was absolutely cooking the Dallas defense as he paced Denver to the victory. It was the kind of effort where it looked like Murray was shooting the ball into a hula hoop anytime he had possession.

In a game between Western Conference powers, Murray was clearly the best player on the floor from start to finish:

What's funny about Murray's eruption is that Shaquille O'Neal had conveniently challenged Murray during TNT's pregame show. None of O'Neal's criticism was out of bounds, either. He simply asked where the star-caliber Murray had been recently, as injuries and confidence issues have plagued Denver's second-best player since it was eliminated in the second round of last year's playoffs.

O'Neal maintained that if the 27-year-old Murray could regain his elite form, then that's all reigning league MVP Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets (with a revitalized Russell Westbrook in tow) need to win a second title in three seasons:

After the Nuggets' win, in an interview with TNT's Jared Greenberg, Murray claimed he hadn't heard what O'Neal said. Honestly, given that Murray was likely warming up on the court in Dallas as TNT's pregame show went on, it's not all that farfetched to believe him.

Even still, Murray disagreed when Greenberg said it was better that Murray didn't hear O'Neal's pregame comments. He still wanted to hear the Hall of Fame center's pointed analysis about him.

So, Greenberg told him everything.

Murray didn't hesitate in response. He agreed that he needs to be better so that the Jokic Nuggets can win more championships. Punctuating that message after a monster 45-point effort is definitely one way to show he's serious:

After Murray's explosion on Tuesday night, the Nuggets now have four straight wins. They're also 8-2 in their last 10 outings and are within striking distance of the No. 2 seed in the West.

It'd be a lot to ask of Murray to drop 40-plus points every night moving forward. That's a lot to ask of any star player. But if he starts percolating more in general as we enter the second half of this NBA season, then the Nuggets' recent run might go on even longer, perhaps even way into the spring and early June.

O'Neal's assessment will be considered evergreen. That is, if it isn't already.

If Jokic and Murray are firing on all cylinders, then the Nuggets might be virtually impossible to beat.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Jamal Murray claimed he didn’t know about Shaq’s pregame challenge after monster 45-point game