Kris Murray returning to Iowa

After spending the last six weeks testing the waters of the NBA Draft, Kris Murray has decided to not join his twin brother in pursuing a career in professional basketball.

The junior to be forward from Cedar Rapids announced on Wednesday that he would be returning to the University of Iowa for at least one more season.

Kris Murray spent the last month plus in Chicago working out with his brother, Keegan, at the facilities provided by his agents with Priority Sports. While Keegan Murray has signed with Priority Sports, who will represent him in the NBA, Kris Murray had to work within NCAA guidelines during this period of time. He also shuttled back and forth between Chicago and Iowa City to complete his academic commitments to finish up the spring semester.

Recently, Kris Murray turned down an invitation to participate in the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, but he did take part in Priority Sports Pro Day in the Windy City and performed very well in front of the many NBA scouts and front office executives in attendance. In fact, Murray generated quite a bit of end of the first round buzz among several teams, but without being guaranteed that he would be selected this year in the first round of the NBA Draft, he opted to return to Iowa to lead the Hawkeye program in the 2022-23 season.

The 6-foot-8 and 225 pound forward averaged 9.7 points and 4.3 rebounds per game this past season, including a career best 29 points and 11 rebounds in Iowa’s win over Indiana on January 13th. He is expected to replace his twin brother in the Iowa lineup this fall at the power forward position and see a significant uptick in his minutes after averaged 18 per game last season.