NBA Timberwolves Sign Tod Murphy

Tod Murphy has been on the fringe of the National Basketball Assn. since he graduated from UC Irvine in 1986.

He has been drafted, looked at, tried out and even played in one regular-season game. But his chances of staying in the NBA have never looked better than now.

Murphy signed a one-year contract Wednesday with the Minnesota Timberwolves, one of two expansion franchises that will begin play this season.

Terms of the contract were not announced, but Murphy said he received a partial guarantee that could increase, depending on the number of games he’s on the roster.

Murphy, 6-feet-10 and 220 pounds, played in Europe last season for Villalba in Spain.

The Timberwolves invited him to a free agent camp in June and a rookie camp in July.

Though signing with an expansion team has its advantages, Murphy’s chances might be slim because the Timberwolves have plenty of experienced front-line players. They picked Rick Mahorn, Brad Lohaus, Steve Johnson and Tyrone Corbin in the expansion draft.

However, Murphy has the advantage of having played for Timberwolves Coach Bill Musselman, who coached Murphy with the Albany Patroons of the Continental Basketball Assn. in 1987.

Murphy has had several opportunities with NBA teams.

After scoring 1,778 points during a four-year career at UCI, Murphy was drafted in the third round by the Seattle SuperSonics in 1986 but was cut during training camp. He signed with a team in Naples, Italy, but injured a knee in the first game.

In 1987, Murphy signed with the Clippers as a replacement for Michael Cage, who was a holdout. Murphy played in the first game of the season but was cut the next day when Cage agreed to terms.

Murphy then signed with Albany, but missed the first two months of the season with mononucleosis before joining the team and becoming the most valuable player of the CBA championship series, won by the Patroons.

Last year, Murphy attended tryout camps for the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics, but was not offered a contract.

“After the Celtic camp, I was really depressed and down on the NBA,” Murphy said. “But I’ll give it one more chance. If it doesn’t work out this time, I’ll make a career overseas.”