A couple years ago when Andrew Wiggins was projected to go first overall in the NBA Draft, TSN made the decision to broadcast all of the Canadian hoops standout’s collegiate games, making the Kansas Jayhawks the most accessible NCAA basketball team in this country for one year.
It was a hit-and-miss venture as Kansas was a good, but not great team that ultimately got bounced in the second round of the NCAA Tournament and Wiggins was inconsistent, as most freshman tend to be, alternating outstanding performances with sleepy nights on the hardwood where you couldn’t help but wonder what all the hype was about.
He still went first overall (as expected), got traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a pretty big trade and went on to win Rookie of the Year. So far this season, the sophomore wing has made strides in his game and is really starting to show the All-Star potential many forecasted even before he stepped on the court in Lawrence.
This year, another future Canadian All-Star is kicking off his freshman season at an NCAA powerhouse and yet he’s getting nowhere close to the kind of attention Wiggins received two years earlier.
Jamal Murray has the potential to be every bit as good as Wiggins at the next level. They play different positions – Wiggins is 2-3 hybrid, while Murray is a 1-2 blend – but the 18-year-old Kitchener native and current Kentucky Wildcats starter showed during an impressive run with the Men’s National Team at the Pan-Am Games this summer that he can already take over games at a high level on the international stage.
He won’t get drafted first overall like Wiggins, as either his teammate Skal Labissiere or LSU’s Ben Simmons will get that spot, but Murray should be a Top 10 pick if he takes the one-and-done route (and he will), with the potential to vault into the Top 5 if he plays to his full capabilities this season under Coach John Calipari.
Many experts believe Murray is actually better suited to the pro game than college, which is saying a lot because he looks pretty comfortable with the Wildcats, averaging 14 points, five rebounds and four assists through the first four games of the year and he’s not shooting the ball particularly well right now either, which means those numbers could climb once he finds his touch.
Murray is going to be Wiggins’ National Team running mate for the foreseeable future and he should be getting the same coverage across the country as was afforded to Wiggins during his lone year in college. Additionally, Kentucky is better this year than Kansas was during the 2014 campaign, so it’s not like you’re showcasing a sub-par team a couple times a week.
You’re letting people see one of the brightest basketball prospects this country has ever produced and a perpetual National Championship contender; what’s not to love about that?
TSN has content hours to fill now that they don’t have nearly as much hockey to broadcast, so why not continue showcasing up-and-coming Canadians on the hardwood?
They did it with Wiggins and they should be doing the same with Murray.
