These 3 players have no business being ahead of Keegan Murray in recent NBA rankings
By Mat Issa
As we near the start of the official 2024-25 regular season, Action Network released their annual top 100 player rankings.
Their list included five members of the Sacramento Kings: De'Aaron Fox (#26), Domantas Sabonis (#27), DeMar DeRozan (#55), Keegan Murray (#73), and Malik Monk (#83).
It's good news to hear that they think five percent of the NBA's top 100 players now wear Kings' uniforms. But the ranking we really want to discuss here is that which was designated to Murray.
No matter how good a ranking is, you will always have some disagreements. Clearly, there was a lot of thought put into this list by Matt Moore and Brandon Anderson (for instance, they did a great job of putting Fox slightly over Sabonis). But there are three players that should not have been listed above our three-and-D prodigy.
Player #1: Miles Bridges
Action Network Ranking: #69
Why Murray Should Be Ranked Over Bridges: In theory, Miles Bridges and Keegan Murray are the same type of player. Their main role is to space the floor, attack closeouts, defend the perimeter, and offer secondary rim protection.
That should make the practice of comparing the two pretty easy. Who is better at those things?
The answer to that question shouldn't require too much thought: Murray. Murray is the better shooter (even in a down year), the more efficient driver (which is what you do when attacking closeouts), the better overall defender, and the better complimentary rim protector.
Player | 3-Point % | Drives True Shooting % | Defensive Estimated Plus-Minus | Block % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Bridges | 34.8% | 54.7% | -0.7 | 1.2% |
Murray | 35.8% | 55.9% | +1.6 | 2.1% |
To me, there is no question who the better player is here.