Keegan Murray’s injury won’t stop him from getting paid.
The Kings forward agreed to a five-year, $140 million rookie contract extension with Sacramento on Wednesday. ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reports this.
The move comes hours after the Kings reportedly signed veteran Russell Westbrook to a one-year contract worth $3.6 million.
Murray, 25, would have reached restricted free agency after this season, but will now remain with the team until at least 2030-2031.
The No. 4 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft has given the Kings consistency in his three years in the league, earning him an All-Rookie selection in his first season.
Last year, Murray averaged 12.4 points with a career-high 6.7 rebounds per game.
The Kings will be without Murray for the next four to six weeks after he tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb during a preseason game on Friday.
He underwent surgery in New York on Monday.
Dr. Amy Ladd of Stanford University told NBC Sports California that Murray may not fully heal for at least six months.
“It will probably take three to six months for the ligament to heal or for the injury to completely heal,” Ladd told the outlet. “So there will be some protection involved even if he has been cleared for sport before. I think four weeks is too early. Eight weeks plus is about right without protection.”
The Kings will look to have a bounce-back season under Doug Christie, who is now the team’s full-time coach after taking over on an interim basis last season following the midseason firing of current Knicks bench boss Mike Brown.
Sacramento has missed the key playoffs the past two seasons and hopes to reverse that this season.
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