Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray has the best chant in the NBA
SACRAMENTO — Every time Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray scores a basket at the Golden 1 Center, a slogan bearing his name echoes.
The chant begins with Kings public address announcer Scott Moak yelling into the microphone after every Murray basket, be it a free throw, a layup, a midrange hit, a 3-pointer or a dunk. There is shouting even after a great performance.
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“KEEGAN!” Moak roars, urging the Sacramento faithful to follow suit.
“MURRAY!” the participants at the Golden 1 Center respond in unison.
During a podcast episode of “White Noise” hosted by Boston Celtics guard Derrick White and Alex Welsh, White was discussing some of the loudest arenas in the league alongside Celtics center Luka Garza and former Celtic guard, now Chicago Bulls guard Anfernee Simons.
In the middle of the conversation, Garza talks about the Kings and how loud their fans are, especially when the team is winning. It was Simons who mentioned Murray’s singing.
“Oh my God. When he hits a three and it’s full there, it’s like,” Simons said with a shocked look on his face.
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White stepped in and continued to play Murray’s chants in Sacramento.
“His rookie year, I was like ‘yo, this is the coolest thing I’ve ever heard,’” White said.
Keegan Murray’s contract and history
Murray was selected by the Kings with the fourth overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. As White said, it’s been his chant since day one.
It’s a call that Murray himself tends to appreciate throughout the match. He said each year the appreciation for singing increases.
“For me, I think every year I continue to appreciate it more,” Murray told USA TODAY Sports. “Because when you go around the league, there aren’t many, if any, teams that do these kinds of things for their players.”
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NBA fans and opponents can expect to hear that chant for Murray for at least five more seasons through 2031.
Murray signed a five-year, $140 million rookie contract extension with the Kings in October 2025.
“Obviously for me to be here another five years is amazing,” Murray said. “I think the fans had fun. I personally really enjoyed it. I think Sacramento did a really special thing for me.”
More NBA: The Kings turn on the beam as other NBA teams adopt victory celebrations
The history of Kings players chants
Believe it or not, the chant for Murray was passed down from previous Kings players who became fan favorites.
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Before it was Murray’s song, it was confidential and belonged to Yogi Ferrell, who played for the Kings from 2018-2020.
“I was surprised when I first heard it,” Ferrell told NBA.com in 2019. “When I made the bucket, it was really cool. It’s amazing to hear my name chanted by all the fans — it just shows how special I feel to them. I love this arena.”
Kings PA announcer Moak wasn’t sure he would hold up initially, but he kept yelling Ferrell’s first name and eventually fans started yelling his last name.
But it originated even before Ferrell. When Italian sniper Marco Belinelli played for the Kings during the 2015-16 season, he kept the remnants of the song.
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After Belinelli scored, Moak shouted: “Marco!”
It took fans a while to understand, but they finally responded with the only acceptable answer if you ever played pool with friends or family growing up.
“Polo,” fans responded.
Thus singing was born in Sacramento and, nearly 10 years later, it would be reserved for Murray.
Some believe the idea came from the Champions League as it was used as a pitch for Argentine footballer Gonzalo Higuain when he played for Napoli between 2013 and 2016.
Kings next game
No matter where it started, it is now recognized as Murray’s song.
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Murray and the Kings will return to action after the All-Star break on Thursday, February 19 when they host the Orlando Magic at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
The team announced after practice Wednesday that Murray, who was a full participant, will return from injury to play against the Magic after missing more than six weeks with a sprained left ankle suffered in early January.
Tip-off is at 7pm local time.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Keegan Murray is just the latest Kings player to receive epic Sacramento chant