Flip Murray: I Just Have to Be Ready

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>PHILADELPHIA -- More than an hour before tip-off, reserve guard Flip Murray sat at his stall in the visitors' locker room at Wachovia Center and divvied up tickets for friends and family.

Several teammates stopped by to give him extra tickets. But Murray, a North Philadelphia native, knew he wasn't going to play in his hometown, unlike fellow Philly natives Richard Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace.

Murray has been inactive for 21 consecutive games and has appeared in only 19 this season.

But this is nothing new.

"I've been in this situation before," Murray said. "I know what they're trying to do here as far as developing the young fellas, as far as getting them some time to be able to play. And me being a veteran, I've seen that before. I know what it takes for a team to be able to do that, try to develop their young players. But just in case I'm called on again, (I have to) just be ready."

Ever since the Pistons decided to accelerate the progress of rookie Rodney Stuckey -- and even before that, when they used rookie Arron Afflalo as one of the first guards off the bench -- Murray, 28, has remained a consummate professional.

He has never complained nor made a spectacle of himself to the media. He hasn't shut out teammates or coaches. In fact, he has done the opposite. Murray still jokes around and flashes smiles. He takes the first team bus to visiting arenas with the rest of the reserves, and practices hard and perspires like the rest of them, as if he's getting ready to play. In practices, he often is one of the last players to leave the court, staying later to go through a variety of shooting drills with assistant coaches.

"He's done a great job," coach Flip Saunders said. "He's very professional. He's worked hard every morning, afternoon, shootaround, so there's no question that when he's called upon, he'll be ready to go."

Murray's mind-set is that there's always a tomorrow, and with that comes a chance -- no matter how slim -- that he might play.

"Because of the fact that I'm not playing at all right now, I have to stay in shape," Murray said. "So I'm just trying to stay in rhythm. Just a little bit helps (more) than not doing anything. Even though I probably won't have my rhythm back if I do start playing for a couple of games, at least I'll be somewhere where I will be in shape, and I'm still able to go out there and play."

Murray's name recently has popped up in trade rumors, so there's a chance he will play again this season -- in Detroit or elsewhere.

But that wasn't something Murray was willing to discuss. He didn't want to speculate on whether he'll be on the roster after the Feb. 21 trade deadline.

"I'm not talking about that," Murray said. "I don't know. If I am, I am. If I'm not, I'm not."</div>

Source: Detroit Free Press