Homegrown Hero: Keegan Murray Scouting Report

Seeing double? Keegan and his twin brother Kris Murray took Iowa by storm this year. While Kris isn’t league ready, his brother is one of the top talents in this years class.

If you would like to learn exactly where Keegan Murray ranks on MIP 99, read more here! 

Bio and Measurables:

Strengths: Murray made a major leap during his sophomore season at Iowa and is going to carve out a nice place in the rotation wherever he is drafted. His size and length allow him to be an active participant on both ends of the floor. On the offensive end, he has shown an ability to excel in either the half court or open floor. Going end to end off a rebound, pushing the pace and dribbling in the open floor are all aspects of his game that should immediately translate to the NBA. As the game continues to develop sizeable wings with the ability to control the ball, push the pace and spread the floor have become extremely valuable. In the half court, Murray is a bit of a swiss army knife. He isn’t afraid to punish smaller/weaker defenders in the post and has a proven ability to finish on or around the block. He can handle the pressure of double teams and always seems to make the right decision even though the box score may not resemble the passes he makes. Outside of the low block he isn’t afraid of contact around the rim and shot 75% from the line this season, while this can continue to be improved upon his consistent fluid form translates to behind the three point line. Shooting 40% from three this year on five attempts per game, Murray is an immediate floor spacer with the ability to make defenses work. He showed flashes of being able to create his own shot at the rim and behind the arc and if he is able to continue to develop he will only continue to elevate his game. Murray was also extremely efficient in catch and shoot opportunities, of his 40% from three 86% of his conversionswere assisted. In the pick and roll, he can be used both on and off the ball as the screener or primary handler. His ability to roll off the ball screen or pop out is going to help him stay engaged in early offense. More work off the ball, he has shown the ability to cut, file the lane in transition and find a way to get into position to make a play. All of these off ball attributes point to his feel for the game and the basketball IQ that comes with being a high level college basketball player, he should have no problem adjusting to the NBA system. 

On the defensive end, he has shown potential as a help defender. Cleaning up the weak side his size and length allow him to contest shots without fouling. He was able to defend without fouling, averaging less than two per game which is encouraging based on his activity on the defensive end. Murray is equipped to primarily guard threes and fours but showed that he isn’t going to be a victim in the pick and roll. Over the year, he was able to show he can recover and has the ability to stay with offensive players all the way to the rim. On the defensive glass he is a good/great rebounder understanding how to position himself on both the offensive and defensive end allowed him to limit second chance points for the opposing team while increasing his own opportunities to score. His willingness to activley participate on both ends, coupled with a high motor should help increase his floor. 

Areas of Improvement: Offensivley his shot is fluid but could work on speeding up his release. In college he benefitted from having the size and length to see and shoot over closing defenders but this may not be the case in the NBA. Even a half a second could allow Murray time to see results at 40% from three but we don’t expect it to drastically impact his value. Can continue to improve as a playmaker, makes the right decisions out of the double team but isn’t the best creator in the half court. A good driver and average dribbler he sometimes gets caught with his head down and misses passes to move the ball. It isn’t selfishness, he just isn’t seeing them would be a way to immediately improve his game and the teammates around him. Can work on improving his mid-range game, something he doesn’t need but would exponentially increase his offensive ceiling, it will make the PNR easier to navigate and give him additional decision making opportunities in the half court. Murray has shown flashes of being able to connect off the bounce but his separation was limited in college, he isn’t currently built to twist up defenders but even adding a consistent dribble crossover could give him the sliver of space he needs to shoot or slide by to get to the basket. 

Physically he looks limited to guarding 3’s and 4’s in the NBA. On the low end, guards could be too quick for him even though he was good at recovering there were times that his feet just weren’t quick enough to keep up with them. 5’s were sometimes stronger than him and he struggled to defend when they were either physical or got deep into the post. While this doesn’t mean he will be a victim in switches, as he can guard them on occasion, he most likely will not develop into the player you put on the opposing star regardless of position. Murray is young and showed some very minor mental lapses when defending but these should correct as he grows. 

External Factors: Keegan comes from a family with basketball, specifically Iowa basketball, in their DNA. With his twin brother playing alongside him the last two years and their father a McDonald’s All American playing for the Hawkeyes before that, it felt like he was always destined to step on the court for the yellow and black. 

Medical History: Murray did experience an ankle injury during the season but it isn’t any concern going forward. Outside of this, he hasn’t had any public injury issues that would impact his draft stock.

Summary: Keegan Murray is a two way player, coveted for his offensive ability. His high motor allows him to be an active participant on both ends of the floor and his physical attributes provide his team an advantage at his position. His current ceiling is a high rotation player or role playing starter however, if he continues to focus on improving his game by developing a mid-range shot, becoming a confident dribbler and expanding his playmaking ability. We haven’t seen any reason Murray can’t be a top tier forward in the league. Over his rookie year, we will be interested in monitoring the time he gets on the floor and the development of his defensive game with the increased size and speed of his matchups. 

MIP Projection: Mid Lottery Pick (6-10)