Kentucky Wildcats star Jamal Murray has declared for the 2016 NBA Draft. What might his future hold?
With the NCAA Tournament nearing its glorious conclusion, the 2016 NBA Draft is beginning to take shape. Players are making their early declarations, with some even going as far as hiring an agent to thus guarantee their departure from the collegiate ranks.
According to SOURCE, Kentucky Wildcats guard Jamal Murray is the latest high-profile prospect to declare for the 2016 NBA Draft.
Breaking news: Jamal Murray will enter NBA draft and not return to Kentucky next season.
— Steve Hensley (@stevewymt) April 1, 2016
This isn’t very surprising.
Murray has an elite physical profile for a point guard at 6’5″ and 204 pounds with a 6’7″ wingspan and the fluid athleticism to move both with and without the ball. He finished his freshman season at Kentucky with averages of 20.0 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.0 steal, and 3.0 3-point field goals made in 35.2 minutes.
Murray did so while maintaining a highly efficient slash line of .454/.408/.783. For his efforts, the Canadian standout earned his place as a Third-Team All-American and a First-Team All-SEC honoree.
Kentucky head coach John Calipari took to Twitter to publicly support Murray’s decision to declare.
What I love about Jamal is he's a great teammate who has a smile on his face every day. I'm going to really miss coaching him.
— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) April 1, 2016
He preceded that tweet with significant praise:
The improvement Jamal showed over the course of the season may be unmatched by anyone I've ever coached.
— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) April 1, 2016
That’s quite the claim.
Players whom Calipari has coached include DeMarcus Cousins, Derrick Rose, and John Wall. Thus, for Calipari to single out Murray as the player who has made the most improvement over a single season is saying something.
The question is, what makes Murray so special?
Next: Draft Projection