Former Iowa Hawkeyes Star Lands Conclusive NBA Trade Forecast

Former Iowa Hawkeyes star Keegan Murray had a rather tumultuous 2024-25 NBA campaign with the Sacramento Kings. While he came on fairly strong down the stretch, a rough first half marred the overall season for Murray, who didn't quite take the step forward that the Kings expected.

As a result of Murray's disappointing year, some have felt that the former No. 4 overall pick could ultimately be traded this summer, but Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes does not seem to think that he will be moved.

In a piece where Hughes listed each NBA team's most untouchable heading into the offseason, he named Murray for Sacramento.

"The Iowa product is the closest thing to a young building block as Sacramento has, and he could sign a rookie-scale extension this offseason," Hughes wrote. "On a roster full of players who generally fall into two categories—players no one wants and players who want out—Murray stands out and should be expected to stick around."

Murray averaged 12.4 points and 6.7 rebounds over 34.3 minutes per game on 44.4/34.3/83.3 shooting splits this past season, marking a rather considerable step back from his sophomore campaign. As a matter of fact, Murray's true-shooting percentage of 55.3 percent was the lowest of his three-year professional career to date.

The 24-year-old was a terrific player at Iowa, leading the Big Ten with 23.5 points a night during his final season with the Hawkeyes in 2021-22. He has not quite materialized as such a scorer on the NBA level, although he has exhibited incrediblee defensive potential.

It may be a bit too ambitious to call Murray "untouchable," but the Kings would almost certainly have to be blown away with an offer to consider moving him. The only way it happens is if they are in the market for a superstar, and it seems hard to imagine Giannis Antetokounmpo heading to Sactown.

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