Keegan Murray Speaks on Game Plan, Momentum after Kings Win

Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray credited the coaching staff following the win over the Denver Nuggets

Nov 22, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray (13) handles the ball against Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) during the first half at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

In what has become a rare occurrence, Kings players spoke to the media after their 128-123 win in Denver last night. Keegan Murray took the podium after posting 19 points (3-8 3PT), 5 rebounds, 2 steals and a block, logging a team-high 37 minutes in his first start back from offseason thumb surgery.

Successful Game Plan

Murray was complimentary of both the team and coaching staff regarding how they approached their second matchup with the Nuggets:

“I feel like we had a good game plan going in. I feel like we executed it pretty well. So, for us, it’s just trying to stick with it, competing on both ends of the floor. Especially in the second half, I thought we played really well on the defensive end. We got stops when we needed to and buckets when we needed to.”

The game plan portion of Murray’s statement is not airtight, but the team’s second half effort and execution is not up for debate. Sacramento looked far more engaged across the board compared to recent efforts. After allowing 12 quick points to open the third quarter, the Kings recovered, holding Denver to just 27 points in the quarter. 

For reference, the Kings did not hold Memphis to under 30 points in a quarter until the fourth quarter, when the game was far out of reach. That Memphis team was not nearly as talented as the Denver team Sacramento faced last night. Some of this came down to shot-making, but the effort was clearly improved.

Murray clearly played a role in this strong effort. As the only player on the roster that brings anything remotely resembling positional size, which was on full display in the win. At times, the fourth-year wing out of Iowa was asked to guard Nikola Jokic in the post. At other times, he was asked to check Jamal Murray on the perimeter. 

Breaking: Players Play Better when Playing Their Position

Nov 22, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Sacramento Kings guard DeMar DeRozan (10) celebrates with guard Zach LaVine (8) after a made shot late in the second half of a win against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

In a development that should surprise absolutely no one, Murray’s return from injury has allowed the rest of Sacramento’s roster to play more of their natural positions. Murray acknowledged this during his media session, explaining, “when I was gone, we had guys playing different positions...so, naturally, I think they’re more comfortable now.”

While always important, this is crucial for a Sacramento team that deploys some very context-dependent players like Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan. 

Some analysts thought Murray’s recent 5-year, $140M extension was an overpay given his shooting regression. Marc Stein reported that the value surprised some agents and team executives, as well. As he does, take artist Bill Simmons took it to the extreme, saying that Murray submitted his resume for his annual “worst contracts in the NBA” list. 

Wait, there's more! 😂

The Kings have signed Russell Westbrook. @BillSimmons and @HousefromDC have some thoughts ... pic.twitter.com/N9Dy8FrrDd

— The Ringer (@ringer) October 17, 2025

I have never accused Bill Simmons of knowing what he was talking about. Anyone who has watched any amount of Kings basketball over the last couple seasons is well aware that Murray’s impact goes far beyond raw shooting numbers. 

The former fourth overall pick has shouldered a massive defensive burden the last two seasons, which certainly played a role in keeping him around market value for wings. Murray’s defensive versatility clearly has a positive downstream effect that touches most (if not all) of the rest of the roster. 

If last night was any indication, fans should expect the Kings to lean on Murray’s versatility. It is almost like adding wings with size helps maximize Sacramento’s highly paid offensive-first hubs. Someone should look into that. 

Vibes Improving? 

“I don’t think we won for like two weeks, so it was good to get the feeling back. Obviously, winning in this league is hard, so for us it’s just trying to keep momentum going into our homestand.” 

This is very true. Wins never come easy, especially in the Western Conference, and especially when your schedule is as difficult as Sacramento’s has been thus far. Most teams would shudder at the thought of eight of their first 17 games coming against teams currently set to enjoy home court advantage in the Playoffs. Unfortunately, that is Sacramento’s reality, having already played Oklahoma City three times, Denver twice, and the Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs one time apiece. 

If there was ever a stretch that would highlight flaws in a roster, it would be this. Lo and behold, that is exactly what has happened. Tensions have clearly been running high, and change appears imminent. For now, though, fans can enjoy knowing the beam still works.

🥹 🟣🔦 pic.twitter.com/xDgpYEskpv

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) November 23, 2025

Adding to some light at the end of the tunnel is that, after this opening gauntlet, Sacramento now has the easiest remaining strength of schedule per Tankathon. It would be irresponsible to take that as a guarantee that the Kings will shoot back up the standings. The responsible interpretation, though, would be that there should not be more eight-game double-digit losing streaks this season. 

Sacramento looks to begin their first win streak of the young season tomorrow against the Minnesota Timberwolves.