Virginia Basketball 2023-2024 Roster Preview: Taine Murray

Will Murray's experience help the junior guard break into the rotation this season?

Basketball season is upon us. As we march closer to another exciting Virginia men's basketball season, CavaliersNow is previewing UVA's roster player by player in preparation for the 2023-2024 season, which begins on Monday, November 6th against Tarleton State at John Paul Jones Arena. 

Today, we analyze junior guard Taine Murray. 

Click on the following links to read our player previews for the rest of the UVA men's basketball roster: Isaac McKneely | Anthony Robinson | Leon Bond III | Dante Harris | Elijah Gertrude | Blake Buchanan | Jake Groves | Andrew Rohde | Jordan Minor | Ryan Dunn | Reece Beekman

Almost two years ago, there was a brief moment in which it seemed Virginia had a budding star in Taine Murray, as in just his sixth-career college basketball game, Murray almost singlehandedly led a remarkable comeback effort against Iowa in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Murray scored 14 points, 11 of which came in the second half, and knocked down four threes to help the Cavaliers erase a 21-point deficit before falling to the Hawkeyes on a last-second jumper. 

Unfortunately for Murray, that game was not the coming-out party for a budding star or even the signaled arrival of a solid contributor. Since then, Murray has yet to match that 14-point effort or even reach double figures in a game and the 20 minutes he played in that contest vs. Iowa remains his career-high in a UVA uniform after two full seasons. 

After appearing in 19 games as a true freshman, Murray got the short end of the stick last season as a result of Virginia's deep and experienced roster. His games played fell from 19 to 13 and his minutes went down from 7.7 to 7.2 per game. Murray's field goal percentage fell to 31.6% from 39.4% and, perhaps most disturbingly, his three-point-percentage cratered from 34.8% to 16.7%, which likely had a lot to do with his lack of opportunities to get into a rhythm on the floor as he attempted only 12 threes the entire season. Murray's season-high in 2022-2023 was a seven-point performance against Monmouth in the second game of the year and his best game was a five-point showing against Clemson in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament. 

There's a little more reason for optimism that Murray could play a larger role this season given the significant amount of roster turnover Virginia experienced this offseason. In Tony Bennett's tenure at UVA, he has placed a high value on continuity and experience, which has been a winning formula in every sense. Murray is the second-most experienced player on the roster in terms of years in Virginia's program, only behind Reece Beekman. The Cavaliers brought in a lot of newcomers to fill in the gaps left by the team's significant departures, but if there are growing pains or other difficulties with those new players adjusting to the system, especially on the defensive end, that could open the door for Murray to get more playing time, particularly early in the season. 

Looking at Virginia's expected starting five, Reece Beekman, Isaac McKneely, Ryan Dunn, and Jordan Minor are penciled in as four of the five starters. While Armaan Franklin took most of the minutes at the "three" in each of the last two seasons, his departure leaves a hole that could be filled by a few different players. St. Thomas transfer Andrew Rohde scored better than 17 points per game as a freshman and the Cavaliers are excited about the potential of redshirt freshman Leon Bond III and true freshman Elijah Gertrude, but Taine Murray is the only player in contention for that spot who has played in a game for Virginia. 

So, what does Murray have to do in order to break into the rotation? The biggest determinant will be his shooting. His experience in the Pack Line Defense will lead to Tony Bennett giving him a chance, especially early on, but if Murray can shoot the ball at a reliable clip from beyond the arc - even his 34.8% three-point shooting mark from his freshman season would have ranked fifth on the team last season - then it'll be difficult to keep him off the floor. With that said, it's not entirely in Murray's hands. Virginia is hopeful that both Andrew Rohde and Leon Bond III will provide a lot of value, so Murray will have to force Bennett's hand by leaning on his experience and playing at a high level early and often. 

What's your prediction for Taine Murray's junior season at Virginia? Let us know on social media below and stay tuned for the rest of our roster previews for the 2023-2024 UVA men's basketball season. 

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