Sacramento Kings rookie Keegan Murray is one of the immediate success stories of the NBA’s Summer League thus far.
We’ve already written about Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren and Detroit’s Jaden Ivey, but it’s time to give some attention to the former Iowa standout as well.
Murray had two 20-point performances as the Kings went undefeated during a three-game stretch during the California Classic. Although his team was trailing by six with six points remaining in the fourth quarter, he continued that hot streak into Las Vegas.
Neemias Queta, who recently signed a two-way deal with the Kings and might be a little bit underrated heading into the year, hit a clutch 3-pointers.
Then a stolen inbound pass allowed Sacramento an opportunity to send the game into a two-minute overtime period. Under the spotlights, Murray displayed remarkable poise under pressure before connecting on the shot from beyond the arc right before the clock expired.
You can watch the unexpected sequence of events below:
Neemias Queta cuts the lead to 3️⃣ and KEEGAN MURRAY TIES IT UP AND SENDS IT TO OT#NBASummer Overtime on ESPN pic.twitter.com/gQF8cWUbsi
— NBA (@NBA) July 9, 2022
Murray did an excellent job tricking his defenders on a wisely-timed pump fake while using a twirl action. It wasn’t the only time he used his fake in the game, but it was a thrilling moment in Las Vegas.
Plus, announcer Mark Jones had an excellent call of the possession.
Sacramento’s highest-ranked officials seemed to enjoy what they saw from Murray on the possession, too. Check out their reactions:
Look at the celebration from Kings GM Monte McNair, assistant GM Wes Wilcox, owner Vivek Ranadive and head coach Mike Brown after that Keegan Murray game tying three! #NBASummerLeague pic.twitter.com/wnS1H6w43q
— Matt George (@MattGeorgeSAC) July 9, 2022
The game, of course, went into overtime. But that period also ended in a tie.
Afterward, the Magic and Kings went into a sudden-death double-overtime period. Murray defended Banchero well, but Orlando ultimately finished the game victorious.
Without much doubt, this was an outstanding finish to the game for two of the top-5 picks in the 2022 NBA Draft. When it was all said and done, Sacramento’s Murray finished the game with 20 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists.
