Iowa's Kris Murray at a press conference on June 22, 2023 in Iowa City, Iowa after being taken in the first round of the NBA Draft by the Portland Trailblazers.
Reaction to Portland Picking Kris Murray
One common theme kept coming up in the NBA draft analysis of Iowa’s Kris Murray being a first-round selection by the Portland Trail Blazers.
Murray joins his twin brother, Keegan, in the NBA — Keegan was the No. 4 overall pick last year by the Sacramento Kings.
So naturally the narrative on Thursday night was a comparison of the two brothers. The narrative, though, also included high opinions of Kris’ selection.
Sports Illustrated’s Kevin Sweeney gave the Murray selection a grade of B+, saying, “Murray isn’t the same player as his twin brother Keegan, but the way Keegan seamlessly integrated into an NBA organization and contributed to winning had to work in Kris Murray’s favor this draft. Kris is not quite the shooter Keegan is, but he’s immensely productive without needing many if any plays called for him. He’s a savvy cutter, good off-ball defender and can play multiple positions. If the Trail Blazers wish to push towards the playoffs, Kris is capable of helping them in the rotation tomorrow.”
ESPN’s Jeremy Woo said of the pick, “Murray isn't quite the same caliber of prospect as his twin brother Keegan, who was selected fourth by the Kings in 2022, but he does reliably do some valuable things: He can make open shots from range, he can operate effectively without the ball, and he rebounds and defends at a solid level standing 6-9. Murray projects as a reliable role player, and he's mature enough to understand what his job is. Low-maintenance rotation guys with his type of game can stick in the NBA for a long time”
The Athletic’s Seth Davis said, “The immediate temptation, of course, is to compare Murray to his twin brother Keegan, the Sacramento Kings forward who was named first team All-Rookie. Kris is not as explosive a scorer as his brother, but he has all the tools to get buckets in the NBA. Despite battling injuries last season for Iowa, Murray averaged 20.2 points on 33.5 percent 3-point shooting (down from 38.7 as a sophomore) to go along with 7.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Murray was the Hawkeyes’ top offensive weapon, but he should benefit from being on the court with other good players, which will allow him to play in space. He needs to trim a little fat and work on his speed and explosiveness, but Murray is well-suited to play his way into a rotation as a wing or stretch four in the NBA.”
The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie added, “Murray projects as a solid rotation player in the NBA, the kind of guy who could give teams real lineup flexibility depending on smaller. He’s just a bit more limited than his brother Keegan as a shot creator, which makes him more likely to be something in the ballpark of a sixth or seventh man with starter upside as opposed to Keegan, who was a starter long term who had top-50 player upside. Kris is a bit stiffer through the hips and doesn’t have a great handle, and his overall load-up and footwork take a split second longer to get into, which means he may be less of a movement shooter than Keegan.
“The shooting is the big differentiator here. Keegan was a good one with real projectability and off-movement potential; Kris is a stiffer shooter who is more inconsistent and will likely be confined to spot-ups. The swing skill is how much that shooting from a standstill develops. If he can knock them down at a 38 percent clip, he can be a potential fifth starter. If he can’t, he’ll be more of a rotation player. But Murray seems like a safe bet in that regard. Finding guys this big who can defend in space and have potential to shoot isn’t all that easy.”
