Keegan Murray Suffers Injury and Will Be Out for the Kings
Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb during a preseason game against Portland on Friday night, the team announced.
Murray will undergo surgery and will be re-evaluated in 4-6 weeks, which will sideline him for at least the first 10 games of the regular season.
This injury comes at a crucial moment for Murray’s career. Entering his fourth season, he is eligible for a contract extension in the coming week. The deadline to reach an agreement with the Kings is October 20. If no agreement is reached, Murray will enter restricted free agency next summer.
Murray has been a pillar of durability at the start of his NBA career, appearing in 233 of the 246 possible games in his first three seasons, starting all but two of them. This ulnar collateral ligament tear is the most significant injury he has suffered as a professional.
Murray was the projected starting forward for a Kings team trying to compete for a spot in the Western Conference playoffs. He has made 543 career three-pointers and has developed into a versatile defender on the wing, meaning the Kings will be without a crucial spacer and their most reliable defender in the first month.
Dario Saric, Malik Monk, Keon Ellis, and rookie Nique Clifford are among the candidates who could start in place of Murray. Dennis Schroder, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Domantas Sabonis are the other four expected starters.
