Born in Dover, Delaware, Murphy played one season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Portland Trail Blazers.

[7] Ronnie Murphy's senior season at Oviedo was cut short when he was ruled ineligible to play because of two incomplete grades.

Greg Robinson, the head coach of Lake Howell High School, told the Sentinel, "[Murphy] is the best I've ever seen in Central Florida.

[10] During his junior season, Murphy scored 19 points to help the Jacksonville Dolphins defeat the UAB Blazers, 70–69, for the Sun Belt Conference Championship on March 1, 1986, in Birmingham, Alabama.

[12] In his December 17, 1986, column for Florida Today, sportswriter Don Coble wrote of the Dolphin's 2–5 record to start the season, "What Jacksonville desperately needs most, Murphy can't give.

The suspension had been in place since November 13, but head coach Mike Schuler said the announcement was delayed in hopes Murphy would take the program seriously.

Team trainers suspected Murphy's weight, which was estimated at 240 pounds (110 kg), complicated the recovery of his injured foot.

[2][24] The day before his suspension was announced, Murphy insulted Schuler in front of the team in the locker room of the Memorial Coliseum after the Blazers' 120–110 victory over the Indiana Pacers.

[31] To make room on the roster for Murphy, Portland allowed forward Nikita Wilson to sign with an overseas club and the Blazers placed him on their suspended list.

Murphy gave an interview to in Dwight Jaynes of The Oregonian in late January in which he said, "[his] weight problem was blown out of proportion".

[37] Murphy fractured his fifth metatarsal bone during a one-on-one practice session with teammate Clyde Drexler at the Riverplace Athletic Club in Downtown Portland on March 21, 1988.

[40][41] It was announced in the off-season before the 1988–89 season that Murphy was assigned to the Blazers rookie training camp at the Portland Community College Sylvania campus.

[42] Portland general manager Bucky Buckwalter told The Oregonian sportswriter Dwight Jaynes, "[Murphy's] career largely depends on what he does this summer.

"[43] Blazers' head coach Mike Schuler met with Murphy and told him that the team wanted him down to 227 pounds (103 kg) before training camp.

On July 18, the camp opened and within an hour of practice Murphy, who weighed in at 244 pounds (111 kg), was sidelined with a sore foot.

Assistant coach Rick Adelman told Dwight Jaynes of The Oregonian, "I think [Murphy's] attitude is much better [...] He has done a good job.

[49] He was the team's starting point guard, in place of an injured Terry Porter, during their first preseason game on October 6 against the Detroit Pistons.

Former teammate Jerome Kersey spoke positively of Murphy, telling The Oregonian, "Honestly, I don't think we have a backup two-guard.

Murphy's agent John Phillips announced they were protesting Portland's waiver with the NBA since league rules prohibit waiving injured players.

Trail Blazers president Harry Glickman denied any wrongdoing, but the team's physician, Dr. Robert Cook, told Oregonian sportswriter David Kahn that Murphy's injury in March 1987 may have never fully healed.

Phillips also alleged Murphy was being paid under the table during his suspension, which was denied by Glickman who called the payments a contract advance.

[57] On January 5, 1989, it was announced the Trail Blazers had entered negotiations with Murphy's agent John Phillips to end their dispute against the team.

He was a patient at the Baker International Wellness Clinic at Amelia Island Plantation in Florida where he lost nearly 50 pounds (23 kg) in five weeks.

Reflecting on his career in 1991, Murphy told Tim Povtak of the Orlando Sentinel, "People all the time say, 'If I had your chance, I wouldn't have let it slip away.'

"[6] Dee Brown, Murphy's teammate at Jacksonville University, reflected on his career in 1990 by saying, "[NBA teams are] paying you all that money and they should know how you tick.