As the second half of the NBA season starts to ramp up, there are several former Hawkeyes who will be in action across the NBA this upcoming week. Let's dive into who they are and where they will be playing.
1. Keegan Murray (Forward), Sacramento Kings (28-28, 4th in Pacific Division)
Keegan Murray has been a staple in the Kings' starting lineup since they took him 4th overall in the 2022 NBA Draft. In their first game after the All-Star break, Keegan dropped 13 points and 5 rebounds in 34 minutes as the Kings were crushed 132-108 in a Cali clash against Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors on Feb. 21. They continue the second half of the season on Monday, Feb. 24 as the take on the Charlotte Hornets at home at 9 p.m. central time. They hit the road for the next 2 contests (8 p.m. Feb. 26 at Utah, 7 p.m. March 1 at Houston) to round out their first stretch of games. Keegan is averaging 12.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 35.2 minutes per game on the season.
2. Kris Murray (Forward), Portland Trailblazers (24-33, 4th in Northwest Division)
The twin brother of Keegan Murray, Kris Murray also plays his pro ball out West as he suits up for the Portland Trailblazers. The second-year player has seen his minutes take a significant hit this year (down to 13.4 from 21.7 the previous year) as he continues to forge his NBA path. In Portland's most recent game on Feb. 22 (2 games after the All-Star break), Kris had 2 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist in 16 minutes off the bench as the Blazers annihilated the Charlotte Hornets 141-88 at home. The Blazers will spend their next stretch of games on the road at Utah (Feb. 24, 8 p.m. central time), Washington (Feb. 26, 6 p.m. CT) Brooklyn (Feb. 28, 6:30 p.m. CT), and Cleveland (Mar. 2, 2:30 p.m. CT on NBA TV) as they look to start the second half strong. Kris is averaging 4.0 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 13.4 minutes per game this season.
3. Luka Garza (Center), Minnesota Timberwolves (31-26, 3rd in Northwest Division)
The two time Big 10 player of the year was an absolute force for the Iowa Hawkeyes, averaging 18.2 points 7.3 total rebounds and 1.2 assists per game in 127 total games for the black and gold. Garza began his career in Detroit before moving onto the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he has spent the last 3 seasons ping-ponging between the Timberwolves G League affiliate (Iowa Wolves) and the big club. In the T-Wolves first game back from the break, Garza saw the floor for 11 minutes and put up 6 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist in the time. The Timberwolves will look to start the second half strong as they take on a tough Oklahoma City Thunder team for a home/away split contest (Feb. 23, 8:30 p.m. central time(ESPN)) (Feb. 24, 7 p.m. CT (NBA TV)) before heading to Los Angeles to battle the Lakers (Feb. 27, 9:30 p.m. CT (NBA TV)), Utah (Feb. 28, 8:30 p.m. CT) and rounding out the stretch in Phoenix (Mar. 2 8:30 p.m. CT (ESPN)). Garza is still looking to carve out more significant minutes at the NBA level, averaging 3.4 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game this season.