#24 Kris Murray Stats, Profile, NBA Draft Projections, Scouting Report, Accolades & Latest News

Kris Murray, Iowa Hawkeyes star forward

School: Iowa Hawkeyes

Position: Small Forward

Height: 6′ 8″

Weight: 215 lbs

Class: Junior

Hometown: Cedar Rapids, Iowa

One of the brightest stars in the Big Ten, Kris Murray is having an impressive junior season with the Iowa Hawkeyes. His versatility allows him to seamlessly play both the small forward and power forward positions at a high level.

Through 15 games in the 2022-2023 season, he is averaging 20.6 PPG, 8.8 RPG, and 1.1 BPG, all while shooting 50.6% from the field, 35.8% from 3-PT range, and 73.7% from the free throw line. Kris Murray is most likely a mid-1st round pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, with the potential to be a lottery pick.

Recruitment and Early Career

A native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Kris Murray attended Prairie High School, where he was an honor roll student all four years in attendance. Instead of attending college right away, he opted to spend a season at the elite DME Sports Academy in Daytona Beach, Florida, working on his game. He then decided to attend college locally, playing for the University of Iowa under coach Fran McCaffery.

The Kris Murray basketball journey had a very slow start to his college basketball career that initially hampered his potential draft status. During his freshman year, he played virtually no role on the team, appearing in only 13 games for an average of just 3.2 MPG. He received much more playing time his sophomore year, appearing in 35 of 36 games and averaging 9.7 PPG and 4.3 RPG.

Kris Murray Age

Born on 8/19/00 Kris Murray is 22 years old, making him older than most of his peers and one of the oldest juniors in the country. His older age is a result of his decision to spend a year at the DME Sports Academy after graduating high school before attending college.

Kris Murray Injury

The only hindrance to Kris Murray’s basketball season this year has been a left foot injury that forced him to miss 5 games earlier this year. Although not all the details of the injury are known, it was reported as complications from plantar fasciitis. Thankfully, Murray was able to return without missing major time and has since resumed his elite level of play on the court.

Are the Murray Twins Identical?

Kris Murray has an identical twin brother, Keegan Murray, who currently plays in the NBA for the Sacramento Kings. Kris and Keegan both played together at Prairie View High School, the DME Sports Academy, and Iowa.

While Kris returned for his junior season, Keegan, who had an impressive sophomore season, left school and entered the 2022 NBA Draft. The Big Ten Network recently covered why Kris returned to school instead of entering the NBA Draft along with his brother. See their video below.

Do the Murray Twins have Siblings?

The Murray twins have two siblings, a sister McKenna, and another brother Demetrius Harper. McKenna currently plays basketball for Prairie View High School. Demetrius Harper was also an athlete at Prairie View and went on to play college football at Coe College.

Their parents are Kenyon and Michelle Murray, who have both been very supportive of the athletic endeavors of their children. Kenyon Murphy played basketball for the Hawkeyes from 1993 to 1996, playing in 122 games over a successful 4-year career. He scored 1,230 career points, which puts him 16th all-time in school history.

What you will find on Murray’s NBA Draft Prospect Scouting Report

Murray impacts the game by scoring, rebounding and defending at a high level. The Iowa Hawkeyes are 6-0 this season when Murray scores at least 14 points on 61% plus shooting to go along with 6 boards or more.

Scoring

A three level scorer that creates his shot and uses decent off ball movement to put the ball in the basket. His ability to score ranges from knocking down the mid or long range jumper, attacking off the dribble, posting up, running the floor in transition and cleaning the offensive glass.

Shooting

Murray’s jump shot is serviceable. While his lift off maybe limited his shot release is quick. Plus his range extends out to the NBA three point line.

When given daylight Murray will not hesitate to pull the trigger. Sometimes his shots are rushed and results in airballs. But overall the potential for Murray to become a very good shooter is there.

Murray can catch & shoot when coming off screens. He’s able to create space to shoot off the dribble with or without screens. His step backs and one dribble pull ups are effective.

Attacking off the dribble

Murray is also effective when attacking the basket off the dribble. His handle is not the smoothest nor the prettiest but his moves such as hesitations, in & outs and crossovers get the job done. He gets to his spots.

Murray is adept at taking advantage of bigger perimeter defenders. Closeout bigs are raised off their feet with head fakes. On ball switches leave slower bigs flat footed and left behind as they watch Murray work his way into the paint and towards the basket.

When it comes to finishing Murray’s does a good job of changing direction on his pivot to set up fade aways and up & under field goal attempts. His lack of explosive vertical athleticism is deceptive as he often finishes with lay ins. But Murray does have the ability to finish above the rim with athletic flushes.

Creating for others

Just as his ability to finish can be deceiving the same can be said of his passing. His ability to create for others is better than his stats indicate. Equipped with decent vision and passing skills Murray is able to drive, draw and make the drop off pass. He can find the open man.

Post

Against smaller defenders Murray knows how to use size to his advantage in the post.When backing down from the low left block Murray effectively uses drop steps towards the baseline to set up strong hand (lefty) field goal attempts.

Transition

In transition Murray runs the floor. He does a good job of leaking out and establishing early favorable position under the basket. Murray often sets himself up for high percentage shots or draws fouls after the catch. He also skillfully utilizes hesitations to attack the basket in transition before the defense can set.

Rebounding

Murray is a good rebounder on both sides of the ball. But he shines a little brighter on the offensive end. A productive worker that actively crashes the offensive glass for clean up buckets, reset opportunities and tips outs to keep rebounds alive when out of his grasp.

Defensively his rebounding fundamentals are sound. Murray finds a body, boxes out and will chase down boards. Plus he’s able to push start the break after securing a rebound.

Defense

Good defender with solid instincts and lateral movement. Stays with ball handlers and does his best to cut off penetration. He slides his feet, bodies up and has the discipline to stay down on shot fakes. Plus he’s instinctive and quick off feet to contest and block shots along the perimeter and at the basket.

The next level

At the next level Murray can become a legit two way player. A small forward that will defend, rebound at his position, and serve as a third or sixth man scoring option. Expect his game to elevate at the next level once he improves his jump shot accuracy and his handle.

2022-2023 NCAA Stats

GAMES PLAYED16
MINUTES PER GAME34.2
POINTS PER GAME20.6
USAGE RATE26.3
FIELD GOALS/ATTEMPTS7.8-15.4
FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE50.6
THREE POINTERS/ATTEMPTS2.4-6.6
THREE POINT PERCENTAGE35.8
FREE THROWS2.6-3.6
FREE THROW PERCENTAGE73.7
REBOUNDS PER GAME8.8
ASSIST PER GAME1.8
TURNOVERS PER GAME1.4
STEALS PER GAME0.8
BLOCKS PER GAME1.1
PERSONAL FOULS2.1

2022-2023 Season and Beyond

The Kris Murray draft stock has been rising steadily this season, as his versatile offensive game and good rebounding numbers continue to impress scouts. Although it took him longer to develop than some of the other top players in his class, he has quickly established himself as a very good NBA prospect.

Although he will most likely land in the middle of the 1st round of the 2023 NBA Draft, he has the potential to be a lottery pick. A successful run in the 2023 NCAA Tournament could also help his draft status a little, but Iowa’s mediocre 12-8 record currently makes it a borderline tournament team at best.

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