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Calvin Murphy

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Calvin Murphy (born May 9 1948, in Norwalk, Connecticut) is a retired American professional Basketball player who played as a guard for the NBA's Houston Rockets from 1970-1983. He is a member of the Basketball and a former member of the Rockets' broadcast team. He is currently the host of ESPN Radio's "Calvin Murphy Show."

Youth[]

Before basketball Calvin Murphy was a world class baton twirler. He says that he was "bullied into it" as his mother and all six of his sisters were twisters. As an 8th grader, in 1963, he won a national championship in baton twirling. His reputation as a twirler earned him invitations to perform at major sporting events and the 1964 New York World's Fair. In 1977, at the height of his basketball career, Murphy won the Texas State Men's Twirling Championship. It took the jury less than two hours to acquit Murphy of all charges. Shortly after the verdict was announced, the Houston Rockets ended their 35 year relationship with Murphy.

Post-NBA life[]

After retirement, Calvin Murphy continued to work for the Rockets organization in numerous roles, but publicly he was most well-known for being the television analyst for Rockets games.

In 2007, the Houston ESPN radio affliate hired Calvin Murphy to host "The Calvin Murphy Show." As the host, Calvin Murphy has been actively campaigning for the Texas Southern University women's basketball coaching position. On a September 2007 broadcast of his show, Calvin Murphy was critical of a basketball player who had been caught using his real name at a prostitution house. His co-host asked him what the player should have done, and Murphy responded that the athlete should have been smart enough to use an alias. The co-host asked Calvin what he would have used, and Calvin immediately responded with "Mojo Turner." Since then, many callers and his co-host call Calvin "Mojo Turner."

Calvin Murphy also works with current NBA players, primarily with their shooting. According to Murphy, in an effort to improve its image, the NBA has instituted a "mentoring" program. The mentoring program connects a young NBA player with a retired player. The retired player is to help the young star avoid the pitfalls and traps that can beset NBA players. As part of this mentoring program, Murphy was on the cover of the November 2007 edition of Sports Illustrated. On his October 25th episode of "The Calvin Murphy Show," he announced that he will be Nate Robinson's mentor. He believes that he was paired with Robinson because like Murphy both are short for basketball players and thus have "attitude."

Statistics and accomplishments[]

  • Height: 5'9"
  • Inducted to the Naismith Basketball in 1993.
  • Jersey #23 retired by the Houston Rockets.
  • Free Throw Percentage, All-Time - Tied for 3rd, 3445 of 3864 (89.2%)
  • NBA Record: Highest Free Throw Percentage in a Season - 206 of 215 (95.8%) in 1980-1
  • NBA Consecutive Free Throws Made - 3rd, 78 (December 27, 1980 - February 28, NBA Finals in 1981)
  • NBA All-Rookie Team: 1971
  • NBA All-Star Team: 1979
  • Games played; 1,022
  • Career points: 17,949 (17.9 points per game)
  • Career steals: 1,165
  • Career assists: 4,402 (4.4 apg)
  • Career high points: 57 (against San Antonio Spurs, 1981)
  • 1000-point seasons: 11

References[]

External links[]

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