Murphy’s Howl Now Has Bite

INGLEWOOD —  A rookie of lean and green timber, he has been thrown to the wolves. One night, he is called upon to defend against Charles Barkley. The next, Akeem Olajuwon. The next, Karl Malone.

Will the Timberwolf survive?

Tod Murphy is pleased to report he’s hanging in there. A surprise starter with Minnesota’s expansion NBA team--who’s surprised? Well, Murphy for one--his position is power forward and his mission is to shut down the other team’s best inside scorer.

Or at least go down trying.

Murphy played one half against Olajuwon and held him to eight points. “And I felt I did a fairly good job on Barkley,” Murphy says.

Fairly good, of course, is in the eye of the beholder.

“He still got 30 points,” Murphy admits, “but he didn’t shoot an astronomical percentage like he does against most people.”

And Malone?

Well, on that evening, Murphy was more fair than good. Let’s just say that against the Timberwolves, the Mailman rang more than twice.

Say, did you hear how Murphy did against David Robinson?

That’s a topic a former UC Irvine Anteater can sink his teeth into.

“I’ve had a large amount of success against Robinson,” Murphy says, “and I don’t understand why. The job I did on him during the summer played a big part in me making this team. I played against him for 15 minutes in a summer game and he didn’t score on me.”

That helped open the eyes of Minnesota Coach Bill Musselman, who already was a semi-believer. Murphy played for Musselman in the Continental Basketball Assn. in 1987-88 and their team, the Albany Patroons, went 48-6--the best-ever regular-season record on any level of professional basketball. Murphy made a bigger mark in the playoffs, leading the Patroons to the CBA title while being named most valuable player of the championship series.

Coaches remember such things.

So when Musselman got his second crack at the NBA after flaming out years ago as coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, he placed an overseas call to Murphy. By then, Murphy could be reached in Villalba, Spain, where he played the 1988-89 season after failing tryouts with the Golden State Warriors and the Boston Celtics.

It helps to have old friends.

Before Musselman’s phone call, Murphy wondered if he’d ever get the call. His previous NBA experience consisted of one game--he was temporary help with the Clippers until Michael Cage ended his 1987 holdout--and camp life with Golden State and Boston left him a little disgruntled. “I was pretty down on American basketball,” he says.

Largely because American basketball seemed to be down on him.

“I felt that I’d done the best that I could do,” Murphy says, “and that still wasn’t good enough. I wasn’t being given a real good shot at making any team.”

Murphy decided to go Euro after a candid conversation with Golden State Coach Don Nelson.

“One of the things I really admire about Don Nelson is that he’s flat-out honest all the time,” Murphy says. “And he told me, ‘You’re an outstanding player, but you haven’t proven you can hit the outside shot.’ And until I did, he didn’t think I could make the team.”

Remedial jump-shooting became the extension course and Murphy became a foreign student. In Spain, Murphy began spraying three-point rain all over the plain. He averaged 20 points a game. He led his team in three-point percentage. He developed confidence inside on what he could accomplish outside.

Yet, with Minnesota, his old Irvine staples--rebounding and defense--are what got him into the starting lineup. Thirty games into the season, the Timberwolves had five victories and Musselman began to tinker. Sacrificing offense for toughness up front, Musselman replaced Sam Mitchell with the 6-9, 239-pound Murphy and it wasn’t long before the victory total started to expand.

Sunday night’s game against the Lakers marked Murphy’s 27th consecutive start. Since moving into the first five, Murphy is averaging more than eight points and eight rebounds a game, including a club-record 20-rebound effort against the Clippers Jan. 2. He scored 15 points Sunday against the Lakers.

Murphy also leads the Wolves in abrasions. Mixing it up with the stars has its price and for Murphy, that has meant playing with a jammed finger, a split lip and a cut face--all at the same time.

He has become Minnesota’s man of 10,000 aches.

“I’m basically a scrapper,” Murphy says. “I’ve got a couple of scars to show for it. I’ve been cut up a couple times. . . .

“I think that’s why Coach Musselman respects me. He’s very intense and I play the same way. I fight and scratch and kick and claw for everything I can.”

Murphy played the same way for Bill Mulligan at Irvine. But who’d have ever thought he’d be doing it against the likes of Barkley, Olajuwon and James Worthy?

On a regular basis?

“Never,” Murphy says. “I never thought I’d be an NBA starter. Maybe a fluke game here or there, if someone got hurt, but never starting game in and game out.

“And when I think about some of the names I’m going against, it’s astounding. Names of guys you dream about playing with--and I’m holding my own against them. To be out there trading elbows and running with them, it’s hard to believe.”

Strange tales. True tales.

Ever hear the one about Murphy and David Robinson?