SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 26: Keegan Murray #13 of the Sacramento Kings dribbles the ball … [+]
The Sacramento Kings have become a bit of a mess this season, winning just 13 of their first 32 games, firing head coach Mike Brown, and seeing third-year forward Keegan Murray become a shell of himself.
For now, let’s focus exclusively on Murray, who has had an outright weird season.
The former lottery pick took a step up last year, averaging over 15 points, doing more with the ball in his hands, and looking primed for a third-year breakout.
Then the Kings signed DeMar DeRozan, which killed their spacing, and now Murray is putting up 11.9 points per night on the worst efficiency of his career.
But it’s not that straightforward.
While Murray’s offense looks genuinely awful this season, his defense has never been better, and he’s made a strong effort in establishing himself on the glass, grabbing 7.4 per game and turning that former weakness of his, into a strength.
So it isn’t as linear as Murray having just regressed across the board, which is usually the case when someone struggles. There are literally elements that have never been better, just as there are elements that have never been worse.
The oddity of his season makes him a bit unpredictable. The Kings, who need their 6’8 switchable forward to produce on both ends of the court, flat-out cannot expect him to do that at this stage, meaning that necessitates an over reliance on De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, and the aforementioned DeRozan.
So, what can be done to help Murray along, which would, in turn, help the Kings get back to something more consistent?
For one, the coaching staff will need to find ways for Murray to get quicker downhill, and all the way to the basket. The third-year man has always had a knack for finishing near the rim, hitting a ridiculously effective 81.5% of his shots within three feet this season, and struggling mostly everywhere else.
For Murray to establish himself on the interior, and seeing more and more shots get converted, it should boost his confidence and rhythm to a point where he can begin to re-balance himself offensively, and slowly transition towards being more comfortable with the three-point shot, of which he’s currently hitting just 29.1% on the season.
The fact that Murray’s flanked by Fox and Sabonis, both strong playmakers, is an asset, and would function as a major component of such a plan, as that would allow the 6’8 wing to move a lot more off the ball, finding seams in the defense of which to utilize.
It won’t be painless, and Murray will undoubtedly go through stretches where he feels uncomfortable playing primarily as a driver, but if it means a higher likelihood of returning to form, so be it.
Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
