The stage was set for San Antonio Spurs point guard Dejounte Murray to have a breakout campaign in his third year in the league. Unfortunately, his season ended before it even it began.

In a preseason game against the Houston Rockets, Murray suffered a torn right ACL that subsequently held him out for the entire 2018-19 season. Murray has gone through nine months of rehab to repair his knee. According to Keith Smith of RealGM, a team executive from the Spurs revealed that Murray's recovery is looking good so far:

“Everything is looking good. We’re confident he’ll be back. It was so sad, because he was poised to have a big year. But all that talent is still there. He’s a great kid who works really hard.”

This is great news for Spurs fans who were looking forward to seeing Murray take a much bigger role in San Antonio. Fans, however, should temper their expectations for Murray as he makes his way back from a serious injury.

While Murray might need some time to get his legs back beneath him, he should eventually pick up right where he left off before he tore his ACL. Known as a lockdown perimeter defender, Murray had shown progress and improvements on offense.

The main knock on Murray's game is his lack of a 3-point shot. With a full season to recover, Murray could come back with a much better stroke from beyond the arc.

The Spurs were ready to hand the keys to the franchise to the 22-year-old after trading away disgruntled superstar Kawhi Leonard. San Antonio gave Murray the starting job and bumped Spurs legend Tony Parker to the bench midway through the 2017-18 season.