The NBA announced Monday that Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray was named Most Valuable Player of the 2K23 Summer League. He joins last year’s Summer League MVP Davion Mitchell as the newest King to win the award.
In his four games, Murray averaged 23.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.3 steals. He shot 50% from the field, and an impressive 40% from 3-point range.
Naturally, Murray was named to the All-Summer League first team alongside Tari Eason (Houston Rockets), Quentin Grimes (New York Knicks), Cam Thomas (Brooklyn Nets), and Sandro Mamukelashvili (San Antonio Spurs). He was the only player to average at least 20 points per game while shooting 50% from the field and 40% from downtown.
A lot of the top prospects impressed this year at the Summer League. It seemed like in the first half of Paolo Banchero’s first game for the Magic, he confirmed everything fans hoped for with the selection. His game is as smooth and advanced as advertised, especially inside the arc.
There are still concerns about second overall pick Chet Holmgren’s weight, Kenneth Lofton Jr. bullied him inside a few times. Despite this though, Chet’s potential as a rim protector and overall unicorn on offense were evident.
With all of this in mind, Keegan Murray still easily had the best stretch of performances of any of the top prospects.
Murray posted the highest points per game average at Summer League by a top-10 pick since 2012 despite being the fourth overall pick, a selection that was criticized by a lot of fans and the media. The raw numbers, as impressive as they are, don’t do Murray’s performance justice, though.
It’s not just how much he’s scored, it’s how. In Summer League, there can be a lot of hero ball as players try to show why they should make a roster. You can see a lot of iso-ball, especially as top prospects try to really show off their game.
While there were times where Murray took it upon himself to go and get a basket, that’s not how the majority of his points were scored. In a Summer League rarity, Murray showed that he can contribute within the flow of the game. He doesn’t need to dribble around for 15 seconds to get a look.
He has an extremely quick trigger, and it helped him get 3-pointers off before the contest. His ability from beyond the arc is extremely encouraging for a Kings team that desperately needs a shooter on the wing.
For a closer look at Murray’s performance over the past few games, @SacFilmRoom on Twitter…
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