The Sacramento Kings have missed Keegan Murray’s presence at the power forward position while waiting for him to recover from thumb surgery, but the wait is almost over.
A league source told The Sacramento Bee that Murray is expected to make his season debut against the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday. Sources said Murray was scheduled to meet the team in Oklahoma City on Tuesday after being assigned to the G League Stockton Kings for practice on Monday.
Murray has been sidelined for the past five weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb. He suffered the injury in a preseason game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Oct. 10 and had surgery Oct. 13.
The Kings (3-11) are in the midst of a six-game losing streak going into Wednesday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder (14-1). The absence of Murray has underscored an imbalanced roster and their lack of depth at the forward position spots.
Murray, who recently signed a five-year, $140 million contract extension, came out of Iowa as the No. 4 pick in the 2022 NBA draft. He was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 2022-23 after setting a rookie record with 206 3-point goals.
Murray has started 231 of 233 games over three seasons in the NBA, averaging 13.3 points and 5.6 rebounds while shooting 45.1% from the field and 37.2% from 3-point range. The 6-foot-8 forward has also emerged as an exceptional defender who can guard all five positions.