[2] His reputation as a twirler earned him invitations to perform at major sporting events and the 1964 New York World's Fair.

[3] In 1977, at the height of his basketball career in Houston, Murphy won the Texas State Men's Twirling Championship.

During his career he was famous for being one of "The Three M's", along with Pete Maravich and Rick Mount, both of whom were NCAA Men's Division I Basketball All-Americans at the same time as Murphy.

Murphy is a member of the Alpha Nu Omega chapter of the Iota Phi Theta fraternity, being initiated alongside fellow future Hall of Famer Elvin Hayes.

In his first season, after averaging 15.8 points and 4 assists per game, Murphy was nominated to the NBA All-Rookie team.

[2] During the 1975 NBA Playoffs, Murphy averaged a postseason career-high of 24.4 points and 5.6 assists per game,[6] as the Rockets advanced past the New York Knicks in the first round (Houston was in the Eastern Conference at the time), before being eliminated by the Boston Celtics in the semifinals.

[7] Two seasons later, on March 18, 1978, Murphy set a career high with 57 points scored during a 106–104 loss to the New Jersey Nets.