23 Jamal Murray

Jamal Murray was born on February 23, 1997, in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada to Sylvia and Roger Murray.  He has a younger brother named Lamar.  Murray played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats during the 2015-2016 season.

Murray grew up in a sports-oriented family. His father, Roger Murray, was an athlete who played basketball and ran track and field. Jamal started playing basketball at a very young age and quickly showed exceptional talent. He attended Grand River Collegiate Institute in Kitchener and later transferred to Orangeville Prep in Ontario, where his father served as an assistant coach.  At Orangeville Prep, Jamal formed a formidable duo with Thon Maker and helped the team defeat many American schools.

Murray was originally a member of the 2016 recruiting class but reclassified to the 2015 class.  As a member of the 2016 class, he was rated a top-15 prospect by nearly every recruiting service and tabbed a consensus five-star recruit.  His stock began to soar following a breakout performance at the Nike Hoop Summit against the USA Basketball Team where he scored 30 points, prior to a 29-point, 10-assist, eight-rebound effort in the BioSteel All-Canadian Basketball Game.  He was named the most valuable player in both games.  Prior to his reclassification, he was ranked the No. 15 overall recruit in the 2016 class by Rivals.

In 2015, Murray committed to playing for the Kentucky Wildcats under coach John Calipari. As a freshman, he made an immediate impact, earning a spot on the Midseason Top 25 list for the John R. Wooden Award and the 35-man midseason watchlist for the Naismith Trophy.  He was named to the First-team All-SEC and the SEC All-Freshman Team. Murray led all major conference freshmen in scoring and set the record for the second-most three-pointers made by a freshman in NCAA history.

As a freshman, Murray turned in one of the most prolific individual seasons in program history.  He was named a third-team All-American by the Associated Press, one of the four NCAA-recognized All-America teams and he was a freshman All-America selection by the Sporting News and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association.  He tied for the SEC high with five SEC weekly honors, including one SEC Player of the Week award and four SEC Freshman of the Week honors.  Murray averaged 20.0 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.14 3-pointers and 2.2 assists per game.  His 20.0 points per game are the most by any freshman in program history and the most for any player in John Calipari’s tenure.  Nationally, his scoring average ranked second among all freshmen.  He strung together 12 games of 20 or more points which is tied for the second-longest streak in program history.  He became the first freshman in school history to total three games with 30 or more points, including a 35-point performance against Florida, which tied the single-game freshman scoring record held by Terrence Jones.  Murray was the first player in the Calipari era to score 700 or more points, and only Cotton Nash, who reached 700 points in 30 games in 1961-62, did it faster at UK.  He was an all-around scorer, but was incredibly productive behind the arc with 113 made 3-pointers on the year.  That mark is the second-most in a single year in program history, just four shy of Jodie Meeks’ record.  It is the most for any freshman in SEC history.  It is also the second most by a freshman in NCAA history, just nine shy of Stephen Curry’s record set in 2006-07.  He made at least one 3-pointer in all 36 games this season, becoming the only player in program history to achieve that feat.  His stretch of 36 games with at least one made 3-pointer broke Tony Delk’s record of 34 consecutive games with a made 3, which was set over two seasons.  Additional UK freshman records Murray set include: most games of 20 or more points (18), points in a single season (720).  He scored in double figures in 35 of 36 games and in 34 straight, while scoring 15 or more points in 31 contests.  The 34 straight games in double figures are the most since Kenny Walker had 36-straight double-figure scoring games in 1985-86.  He became the first UK player to score at least 18 points in each of the first seven SEC games of a season since Meeks in 2008-09 and is the first freshman in school history to achieve the feat.  He averaged 26.4 points per game in February, the highest scoring month for a Wildcat since Meeks averaged 28.0 points per game in January 2009.  According to ESPN, Murray was the nation’s leading scorer at 25.8 points per game from Feb. 1 to March 3.  His .800 percentage from behind the arc against the Gators is the best 3-point percentage in a single game in school history with a minimum of 10 attempts.  He was the first freshman in school history to make at least five 3-pointers in consecutive games when he turned the trick against Florida and Georgia.  He was ranked among the SEC leaders in points per game, made 3-pointers, 3-point field-goal percentage and minutes played.  He averaged 35.2 minutes per game, second most in the SEC and made 67 3-pointers in SEC play, the most in the league.  Murray averaged 22.4 points per game in SEC play, second most in the conference.

Murray was selected as the 7th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets. Since then, he has become a key player for the Nuggets, known for his scoring ability and clutch performances. In 2023, he won an NBA Championship with the Nuggets. Murray has also represented the Canadian national team in international competitions.