Twitter/Jamal Murray
The next NBA Draft is often projected as a two-man race between Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram.
Apart from the talented freshmen, there are some upperclassmen that could offer solid contributions but scouts doubt their All-Star potential.
Which leads us to Jamal Murray, Kentucky's phenomenal recruit from north of the border, who has lit up the court in their conference games. The 6'5" combo guard averaged 22.4 points in SEC play.
That was not an accident, as SB Nation points out. Coach Calipari decided to deploy Murray as a shooting guard, handing over point guard chores to the equally remarkable Tyler Ulis. Murray went on a tear playing off the ball.
"Murray should make defenders tremble when they see a screen coming," SB Nation's Kevin O' Connor suggested. "He's advanced at making the right shoot/pass read and savvy at creating space with his hips. This makes him lethal in catch-and-shoot situations."
Yet, Murray still knows how to play the point although he has built a solid reputation as a scorer every since the Pan-Am Games. He could be developed as a point guard who can hit from three, which is why his positive upside has been compared to no less than Stephen Curry. In Hoops Habit's evaluation, Curry represents Murray's ceiling.
"Murray is at his best when he can blend on-ball duties with an off-ball role-something the Golden State Warriors have perfected with Stephen Curry," HH writer Maxwell Ogden wrote, but he is quick to clarify: "His ultimate upside comparison is not suggesting that Murray will be the next Curry, but that he has the tools to excel in very similar ways."
Ogden's disclaimer: "It's a very loose comparison, but Murray has the skills to be an All-Star in this 3-point-heavy era."
It's unlikely that Kentucky will give Murray a role as big as what Curry did with Davidson, but Murray does not have to be a phenomenon to get national attention, which is a default feature for any Kentucky team. While he does have weaknesses in the defensive end, his skill set is the most in-demand in the NBA today.
He went as high as no.4 in the latest mock drafts, besting upperclassmen Kris Dunn and Buddy Hield, both of whom are the stars of their schools. Murray can make the best of his opportunity as Kentucky will most likely enter the Big Dance once again.
While it's unlikely he upstages the top two, he could make a solid choice as a top 5 pick.
