The 2021-22 season was quite the year for Iowa basketball. Not only did they win the Big Ten Tournament championship, but they saw the emergence of star forward Keegan Murray. In 2022, we might see the emergence of another Murray into the conversation for Big Ten Player of the Year.
Keegan Murray was sadly unable to make it three Hawkeyes in a row to win the award, somehow losing out to Wisconsin’s Johnny Davis. Murray at least was able to win Big Ten Tournament Player of the Year, but his younger brother Kris looks every bit of a contender to bring the award back to the Hawkeye State.
In 247Sports’ Isaac Trotter’s predictions for each Power Six conference’s Player of the Year in the 2022-23 season, Kris Murray was listed as “strongly in the mix” for the award.
Murray and Edey are two returners who were really good role players last year but are itching to be the top option. Murray should put up video-game numbers in Iowa’s friendly offensive system. – Trotter, 247Sports.
Murray is definitely more of a projection than some of the other contenders. Michigan center Hunter Dickinson, Trotter’s pick to win it, is already an established star. Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis has been a longtime stalwart of the Big Ten, earning multiple All-Big Ten awards.
While Murray might not have reached their status yet, all the signs point to a breakout season in 2022-23. In limited time as a role player, Murray averaged nearly ten points on efficient scoring and was the Hawkeyes’ leading scorer and rebounder off its bench.
His 29 points off the bench against Indiana show just how dominant of a scorer he can be in his third year. There’s a reason he considered staying in the 2022 NBA draft. Murray’s talent is greater than his numbers were.
The Hawkeyes will be Murray’s team in 2022-23. Both his brother Keegan and longtime starter Jordan Bohannon are gone. The Hawkeyes will rely on him to bring them back to the NCAA Tournament next year. We know he has the talent, but can he be a Big Ten Player of the Year caliber player with the spotlight brightly shining on him?
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