NBA draft analyst Jonathan Givony of ESPN recently extolled praise for how the Portland Trail Blazers approached this year’s NBA draft.
Givony raved about the Trail Blazers’ draft in a video on Twitter, captioning it, “I love how the Portland Trailblazers drafted last night; picking Scoot Henderson and Kris Murray in the first round, and then positioning to snag Rayan Rupert in the second.”
Of course, everyone has nothing but good things to say about the Blazers’ third-overall pick Scoot Henderson. Many saw him as the second-best player in the draft, one worthy of a first-overall selection in a non-Victor Wembanyama year.
Whether or not they look to pair Scoot with star point guard Damian Lillard to create a dynamic backcourt, or if they see Scoot as Dame’s successor we will have to see. Whatever direction they go with, Murray is the perfect complementary player, as described by Givony in the interview.
“He’s a very good complementary player for Portland to add. A guy like Damian Lillard looks at him and says ‘Okay, this guy’s turning 23 in August, I can work with this. This isn’t a teenager,” Givony said.
I love how the Portland Trailblazers drafted last night; picking Scoot Henderson and Kris Murray in the first round, and then positioning to snag Rayan Rupert in the second. pic.twitter.com/5zOMn8oqB4
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) June 23, 2023
That is a very important thing to note. Murray is not the youngest player in this draft, but for the type of player he is, that experience actually works to his advantage. The Trail Blazers aren’t drafting Kris Murray to be a superstar or someone to carry the team. They already have Damian Lillard and they just drafted Scoot Henderson with that type of future in mind.
What Portland needs now is to start constructing a cohesive roster around their stars. They already have some pretty good guard play, especially with recent draft picks Shaedon Sharpe and now Scoot Henderson.
What they need are those glue guys. The role players who can come in, play off the stars, and help the team in multiple areas. As Givony pointed out, Murray is just that type of 3-and-D wing player.
Whoever Portland decides to build their franchise around, you can be sure that Kris Murray will be a great complementary fit.
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