Murray Quietly Returning to Form

Forward Lamond Murray didn’t pout when he was held out of the starting lineup by Coach Bill Fitch on Saturday against the Utah Jazz after missing nine of 13 shots in Friday night’s 104-92 loss to the New Jersey Nets.

Murray, fined and suspended by the Clippers for criticizing Fitch in 1996, has learned to keep his mouth shut.

But Murray may have shot his way back into the starting lineup by getting 18 points, six assists and two steals in 25 minutes as a reserve.

Murray, who went into Saturday’s game averaging a career-best 15 points, made five of eight shots and scored 12 of the Clippers’ 23 second-quarter points against the Jazz.

Swingman Lorenzen Wright, who moved from center to forward against the Jazz, had 10 points and seven rebounds.

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Forward Loy Vaught, who has missed five consecutive games because of a back injury, plans to meet with two physicians today before deciding whether to have an operation.

Vaught, who has a degeneration between the fourth and fifth disks, is considering two surgical procedures, one of which would be season-ending.

Vaught, advised to change medications by Dr. Ted Goldstein last week, will meet with Dr. Arthur White, who performed back surgery on former San Francisco 49er quarterback Joe Montana, this morning in Daly City. Vaught will fly back to Los Angeles for an afternoon meeting with Dr. Robert Watkins.

“I think at that point we’ll have some pretty good information about whether or not to have surgery,” said Vaught’s agent, Jim McDowell.

Vaught, who averaged a team-best 14.9 points and 10 rebounds last season, is averaging 7.5 points and 6.5 rebounds in 10 games this season.

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Guard Brent Barry, who sat out Saturday’s game because of a bruised left calf, did not practice Monday.