Murray Fills Long-Range Goal : Basketball: Lifelong dream to play in the NBA prompted UCLA forward to forgo his final season of eligibility.

An immediate chance to fulfill his lifelong goal prompted UCLA’s Tracy Murray to announce Wednesday that he is giving up his final season of college eligibility to make himself available for next month’s NBA draft.

“Of course you want to live comfortably but my decision was based on a dream, and I’m about to live my dream,” Murray said.

That dream is to play in the NBA.

“It’s always been my dream,” Murray said during a news conference. “I was almost born with a basketball, and I’ve dreamed of playing (in the NBA) for years now. The opportunity is here, and this was the best time to take it. . . .

“It’s always been a dream of mine to play against the Michael Jordans and the Magic Johnsons and the Larry Birds. And my dream was right there, to where I could just decide and it would come true.”

It could have come true next year, but Murray couldn’t wait.

“I’m aware I did say earlier in the season that I would come back (to UCLA),” he said. “But after investigating further, I decided the best thing for me to do would be to further my career in basketball.”

He accomplished much at UCLA:

--A 6-foot-8 forward with exceptional shooting range, Murray averaged 21.4 points and seven rebounds last season for a team that was 28-5, gave the Bruins their first Pacific 10 Conference championship in five years and reached the round of eight in the NCAA tournament.

--As a sophomore, he averaged 21.2 points and 6.7 rebounds.

--As a freshman, he averaged 12.3 points and made two free throws with nine seconds remaining in a 71-70 victory over Kansas that put the Bruins in the NCAA tournament’s round of 16 for the first time in 10 years.

Murray, 20, wound up fifth on UCLA’s all-time scoring list. Among UCLA forwards, only teammate Don MacLean ended his career with a higher scoring average than Murray’s average of 18.3 points.

Murray also ranks among the top 20 on the Bruins’ rebounding list. He is the leader in three-point shots attempted and made.

“I believe that I am now fully prepared to take the next step in my basketball career,” he said, reading from a statement. “I feel that the experience and training I have received during my three years at UCLA have prepared me for the challenges that will face me in the NBA.”

After having said repeatedly that he planned to return to UCLA next season, Murray said he had a change of heart last month.

Asked why, he said: “It was a pretty good season for the team, and individually, it was a pretty good season, also.”

His parents said they got positive feedback from NBA teams.

“Every team needs a good shooter,” Murray said. “Everybody needs somebody who can put the ball in the basket.”

Including UCLA, of course.

But Coach Jim Harrick didn’t begrudge Murray.

“He just wanted to go,” Harrick said from Hilton Head Island, S.C. “I think, deep down, he just wanted to go.”