In Praise of Kris Murray

[Rastapopoulos]

It really bugs me that a significant number of online types make it their business to dump on Kris Murray. Yes, his three point shot is a major work in progress, but the man is a +/- GOD, and it's because he does all the little things. He can rebound like a motherfucker if he needs to. He actually has a better offensive bag than you'd think (better than Toumani, for example) he's just unselfish to a fault. And, of course, he's a terrific defender. A valuable member of the bench squad - and if you fixed his shot (although, note he's already better than Vit, DENI, Blake, Sidy and Love) he'd be prime Shane Battier.


(Second half stats - joint lead in +/- per game with Jrue, but in 8 mpg less.)

 

[JfizzleBlazer]

Murray > Sidy

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Murray > Sidy

This is known as "damning with faint praise"

 

[Pinwheel1]

Agree, I think Murray is valuable without a 3pt shot. That said, this is a big summer for him if he wants to get paid. Big difference between his game now and if he shoots 36-38% next year. Especially since he usually is wide open when he shoots it.

 

[noknobs]

Yeah I've been impressed with his effort and offensive rebounding lately, and he even hit a few threes in the Sac game. Hope he keeps it up.

 

[wizenheimer]

he's a solid situational role player who does a lot of the little things that help generate wins

that said, I believe +/- is an overrated and overused stat. It does not match BPM; he's 10th on the team in BPM and winshares/48; 13th in PER; 6th in on/off

 

[Rastapopoulos]

he's a solid situational role player who does a lot of the little things that help generate wins

that said, I believe +/- is an overrated and overused stat. It does not match BPM; he's 10th on the team in BPM and winshares/48; 13th in PER; 6th in on/off

Everybody shits on +/- but it's got to be better than PER. That's an empty stat if ever I saw it.

 

[PtldPlatypus]

Yeah, Murray has earned his spot in the playoff rotation. Unfortunately, with Jerami likely returning tonight, he's probably getting pushed out, even though it's probably Sharpe who should be sidelined at the current moment.

 

[Mediocre Man]

Murray > Sidy

In fairness….

Rupert > Sidy

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Yeah, Murray has earned his spot in the playoff rotation. Unfortunately, with Jerami likely returning tonight, he's probably getting pushed out, even though it's probably Sharpe who should be sidelined at the current moment.

Jerami's back just in time to get us a lottery pick

 

[PtldPlatypus]

Jerami's back just in time to get us a lottery pick

Wouldn't surprise me in the slightest

 

[riverman]

Kris is the perfect plug and play bench guy. He gets you the ball and doesn't turn it over. His free throw shooting went from the 40s last season to the 70s this season. He has learned how to defend like Toumani does. No stupid fouls or bad passes. Kris is a keeper. He's a key member of the best bench we've had in the modern era. I know Torey over at Blazer's Uprise has never liked him and their crowd disses him every post game. I never understood that but people are welcome to their opinions. Every other podcast seems to see value in him. I like his game a lot. He's probably our best small ball 5 right now. Jrue and Jerami have praised his game as have most of the starters. I think he should get a Matisse type contract moving ahead.

 

[JDC]

My little things king had a rough start to the year, but he really came along the 2nd half of the year after the back injury. His combo of selfless play and size/speed/strength combo on D is going to keep him in the league for a while.

The shot showed a little life post all-star too.

 

[Hoopguru]

My little things king had rough start to the year, but he really came along the 2nd half of the year after the back injury. His combo of selfless play and size/speed/strength combo on D is going to keep him in the league for a while.

The shot showed a little life post all-star too.

IMO, he's an old school 4 as he more effective around the hoop versus his team's worst 3 point shooting. He doesn't take that many but teams give him that shot at 27%. I am surprised he hasn't improved more with the 3 since coming into the league.

 

[wizenheimer]

Everybody shits on +/- but it's got to be better than PER. That's an empty stat if ever I saw it.

it's not empty. It gauges offensive production. Look at the top-30 in the NBA in PER:

1	Nikola Jokić	32.3
2	Shai Gilgeous-Alexander	30.8
3	Victor Wembanyama	29.9
4	Luka Dončić	27.9
5	Kawhi Leonard	27.9
6	Jalen Duren	26.1
7	Donovan Mitchell	22.9
8	Zion Williamson	22.6
9	Jarrett Allen	22.1
10	Karl-Anthony Towns	22.0
11	Jaylen Brown	22.0
12	Tyrese Maxey	21.9
13	Jamal Murray	21.8
14	Anthony Edwards	21.8
15	Cade Cunningham	21.6
16	Chet Holmgren	21.6
17	Alperen Şengün	21.4
18	Kevin Durant	21.1
19	Donovan Clingan	20.9
20	LeBron James	20.8
21	James Harden	20.7
22	Jalen Johnson	20.4
23	Devin Booker	20.4
24	Deni Avdija	20.3
25	Neemias Queta	20.3
26	Austin Reaves	20.2
27	Jalen Brunson	20.1
28	Kel'el Ware	20.0
29	Evan Mobley	20.0
30	Michael Porter Jr.	19.9

it has a bit of a bias toward big men, like most stats do. And like a lot of stats, the further down you scroll the more noise is introduced. But I'm not seeing any real outliers in that PER list. I saw Queta and thought maybe he's an outlier, but when I checked, he averaged 10.2 & 8.4 with 1.3 blocks while shooting 64% on FG's and 71% on FT's. Unspectacular but solid

and again, like a lot of stats, you need to be cautious about comparing 33 min/game players to 17 min/game players

your +/- list shows Murray at +4.6; Clingan at +0.7; and Deni at -0.3. That's pretty suspect, especially considering it's about the only team stat that shows Murray as best on the team. All the rest show about an 8th player in a rotation

 

[Rastapopoulos]

@wizenheimer the fact that Zion Williamson is top 10 speaks volumes

 

[1 Eye Jack]

He’s every coaches dream sub. He comes in and rarely makes a mistake but what he lacks in shooting he makes up for in every other category including always I mean always being in the right position. He also extends plays as well as just about anyone on the team not named Clingan. He's a great role player and every team needs at least one of those guys. I expect his 3 point shot will improve over time.