Virginia’s Murphy will declare for 2021 NBA Draft

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Virginia’s Trey Murphy said Tuesday that he plans to test the NBA waters and will declare for the 2021 NBA Draft. However, he will also keep the door open to return to the Cavaliers program.

The 6-foot-9 junior guard from Durham, N.C., has been ranked higher on some NBA mock draft boards that teammates Sam Hauser and Jay Huff. NBA teams will no doubt like the potential of Murphy, who shot 41.4 percent from the 3-point line this season, and 48.4 percent from the field. He is also an excellent free throw shooter.

A member of the All-ACC Academic Team, Murphy played one season for UVA after transferring from Rice. He played in 25 games and started 20, averaging 11.3 points per game with 3.4 rebounds per outing.

“After long and deliberate discussions with my parents, and after speaking with Coach Bennett, I will declare for the 2021 NBA Draft while maintaining my eligibility,” Murphy tweeted on Tuesday.

“This decision was made with my faith as my foundation. Playing in the NBA has always been a dream of mine. A goal that I want to accomplish. Ultimately I thank God for giving me the ability to play basketball.”

Murphy thanks both UVA and Rice and the fan bases of both institutions that support him.

“The love will never be forgotten. It’s part of me.”

Should Murphy leave, that would make seven players from last season’s team having exited the program including seniors Huff, Hauser and Tomas Woldetensae in addition to three transfers, Casey Morsell (NC State), Justin McKoy (North Carolina) and Jabri Abdul-Rahim (Georgia).