Ronnie 2K speaks on Kings’ Keegan Murray winning Rookie of the Year in NBA 2K23 simulation
Kings rookie Keegan Murray was recently named Rookie of the Year in NBA 2K23’s official simulation of the 2022-23 season.
NBA2K digital marketing director Ronnie Singh, otherwise known as Ronnie 2K, believes Murray has a good chance of winning the award in real life when votes are tallied at the end of the regular season.
“I think he has a tremendous opportunity here,” Singh told The Sacramento Bee. “He’s going to have a lot of scoring potential on that team. The Kings are going to be sneaky good and he’s right there as part of that conversation.”
Murray, who seems to be on the verge of joining Sacramento’s starting lineup, was selected out of Iowa with the No. 4 pick in June’s NBA draft. The 22-year-old forward is widely regarded as one of the leading candidates for Rookie of the Year along with the Orlando Magic’s Paolo Banchero, Indiana Pacers’ Bennedict Mathurin and Detroit Pistons’ Jaden Ivey.
Singh feels Murray will be a strong candidate, especially if the Kings, who are mired in an NBA-record 16-year playoff drought, reach the postseason.
“I think Rookie of the Year speaks to how much better that team is year-over-year, and did (the player) fill up the stat sheet?” Singh said. “I think Keegan Murray can definitely help in doing both.”
Murray enters his first season in the NBA with a stellar resume. He was arguably the top player in college basketball last season and came out as one of the most NBA-ready players in the draft.
Murray was the best player at the California Classic in San Francisco, where the Kings went 4-0. He went on to win MVP at the Las Vegas Summer League, where he averaged 23.3 points and 7.0 rebounds while shooting 50% from the field, 40% from 3-point range and 80.8% at the free-throw line.
Murray was sensational in two preseason games — averaging a team-high 16.0 points on 70.6% shooting from the field and 70% shooting from 3-point range — before missing the last two due to COVID-19. Murray also missed the season opener against the Portland Trail Blazers, but he demonstrated the same kind of ruthless efficiency when he made his NBA debut against the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday.
Murray had 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting with five rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots against the Clippers. He followed that performance with 16 points and four rebounds against the Golden State Warriors on Sunday. He went 6 of 14 from the field and 4 of 10 from beyond the arc in that game on the second night of a back-to-back, days after clearing NBA health and safety protocols.
Murray has come off the bench in each of his preseason and regular-season appearances, but that could change when the Kings face the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday at Golden 1 Center. Kings coach Mike Brown started Murray in the second half against the Warriors on Sunday and acknowledged after the game “there’s a chance he could start going forward.”
Brown probably wouldn’t have made that statement unless he was already leaning toward that decision. At Tuesday’s practice, Murray was sporting black practice attire, same as starters De’Aaron Fox, Kevin Huerter, Harrison Barnes and Domantas Sabonis. KZ Okpala, who started three preseason games and the first three regular-season games, was wearing gray with the team’s backups.
After two games, Murray is averaging 17.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.0 blocks. He is shooting 54.2% from the field, 43.8% from 3-point range and 100% at the free-throw line. Murray ranks third among rookies in scoring, trailing Banchero (22.8 ppg) and Mathurin (22.3ppg).
Singh pointed out the NBA 2K23 simulation also predicted the Memphis Grizzlies will defeat the Philadelphia 76ers in seven games in the NBA Finals with Ja Morant winning Finals MVP. Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum was projected as the regular-season MVP.
“A simulation means there can be multiple results,” Singh said. “This is our official one, where we ran it through our extraordinary ‘My League’ simulator. … That’s what our official simulation ran, but, of course, anybody can run it and maybe they’ll get different results, but this is the one we got most often.”
