Keegan Murray officially stands alone atop the NBA's rookie 3-point mountaintop.
By making his third triple of the night against the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday at Moda Center, Murray broke Donovan Mitchell's single-season record for most 3-pointers made by a rookie.
The trey put the Kings' young forward at 188 total for the 2022-23 NBA season, five years after Mitchell finished his 2017-18 campaign with 187.
Murray also will have six more regular-season games to add to his total, and could become the first rookie to reach 200 made 3-pointers in a season.
Earlier this week, Kings coach Mike Brown was asked about the significance of the record Murray was about to break.
“I'm excited," Brown told reporters Monday. "You know, like I said before, you know, an attempt to break that record should mean something to everybody. You know, it's a phenomenal record to break. Obviously the guy that has it right now is a phenomenal player and going to be in the Hall of Fame. And so when you start talking about those types of things and something that is there in the record books and talking about the history of the game, it's no small feat. And so you look forward to any year, guys have an opportunity to put their imprint on the game in a way that Keegan will once he breaks that record.”
NBA
Sacramento took Murray No. 4 overall in the 2022 NBA Draft and hasn't looked back since, storming full-steam ahead toward its first playoff appearance since 2006, thanks in part to the rookie's sharpshooting.
In his rookie campaign so far, Murray is averaging 12.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.6 3-pointers on the No. 3-seeded Kings. Before he broke the record, he took some time Saturday to reflect upon his impending accomplishment, and gave plenty of credit to his teammates.
"I think it’s crazy just because it comes all in the flow of our offense," Murray told reporters (h/t Fox40's Sean Cunningham). "I feel like I really don’t do anything special. We have a lot of guys who know how to play-make, so I’m able to knock down shots, and that’s kind of an attribute to them just finding me in the flow of our offense."
Brown believes the accomplishment should earn Murray an NBA All-Rookie First Team nod.
"That [3-point] record is, like, monumental, in my opinion, when it comes to rookies," Brown told reporters after Saturday's game. "... Everybody’s doing something as rookies, but to break that record with your team sitting in the third spot and going to the playoffs and you’ve been starting for this team all year, come on, man.
"That’s a no-brainer for First-Team All-Rookie."
RELATED: Keegan outlines career goals for current, future seasons
As the Kings finish the regular season with the playoffs in their sights, Murray certainly hopes Sacramento can make a deep run and, perhaps, bring a Larry O'Brien Trophy to the 916 to complement his latest accomplishment.