Last season, in Iowa, while his brother Keegan burst onto the screen and established himself as an indisputable “lottery pick” (23.5 points at 55.4% in shots, 8.7 rebounds), Kris Murray bided his time without flinching.
Arrived together at the start of the 2020 school year on the Iowa City campus, the two twins did not really experience the same trajectory, since the current rookie of the Kings was a useful “role player” from his first year, before becoming one of the stars of the university circuit for its second season.
For Kris, it took patience: just over 3 minutes on average in 2020/21, then 17.9 minutes last year, for 9.7 points and 4.3 rebounds.
A discreet but real progression, which suggests an explosion for the third season, now that Keegan Murray is no longer around and that the reins of the attack will logically return to him.
” It was time for us to change course » confided Kris Murray, who briefly tested the NBA waters in the spring before returning to campus. ” He’s having fun in Sacramento and I know he’s happy to be there, while I’m having fun here for another year. »
Stand out like Kris, not like Keegan’s brother
Already considered a potential first-round pick of the 2023 Draft, Kris Murray is eager to stand on his own feet on the court, when many NBA scouts will have their eyes on him this season, after the success of his brother last year.
” I’m excited to show what I can do this year. It’s bound to be a little different without Keegan, because he made my life on the pitch easier. he conceded, before warning that he will be less of a scorer but more “all-around” than his brother with the Hawkeyes. ” However, we are two very different players in my opinion. And you will be able to realize it. I’m not going to average 23 points like him. I will be somewhere between 15 and 20 points, but I will also have four or five assists per game. »
Fran McCaffery confirms that the rise of Kris Murray, on all fronts, can already be observed. ” He accepts this responsibility. Offensively, he is much more aggressive. It was already last year, but you know what I mean. And defensively, he’s always in the right place concluded the Hawkeyes coach.
