Murphy Faces Sex Charges

Hall of Fame guard Calvin Murphy surrendered to authorities Monday in Houston after being charged with sexually assaulting his daughters more than a decade ago.

Murphy was charged with three counts of aggravated sexual assault and three counts of indecency, said Harris County Dist. Atty. Chuck Rosenthal.

The charges involve five daughters who were under 17, the Harris County district clerk’s office said. The daughters said Murphy sexually abused them between 1988 and 1991, according to an affidavit by Drew Carter of law enforcement’s Texas Rangers.

Murphy, 55, was released from jail after posting a $90,000 bond. Murphy had no comment.

Murphy’s attorney, Rusty Hardin, said his client insists the charges are “absolutely not true.”

“We believe [the alleged incidents of abuse] did not happen, and Calvin is absolutely insistent they did not happen,” Hardin said. “Once these allegations are made, no one ever fully recovers. No matter what a jury says, he will always be branded with this.”

The prosecutor’s office notified other jurisdictions about the charges. “He has a number of families around the country, according to our research,” Rosenthal said.

Murphy, a TV analyst for the Rockets, was a star guard for the franchise from 1970 to 1983.

The Rockets granted Murphy a leave of absence from his broadcasting duties.

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Chicago Bull forward-center Tyson Chandler was suspended for one game without pay by the NBA for throwing a punch at the Atlanta Hawks’ Michael Bradley.

Chandler, who tried to hit Bradley in Chicago’s loss to the Hawks on Saturday, sat out the Bulls’ game Monday night against the Miami Heat.

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Mateen Cleaves signed a 10-day contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers, who need help at point guard while Jeff McInnis is on the injured list.

McInnis went on the injured list Saturday because of a bruised right shoulder and can’t return before April 6 against Toronto. Backup Kevin Ollie has struggled as a starter.

Cleaves averaged 5.4 points and 2.7 assists as a rookie for Detroit, then spent most of the next two seasons on Sacramento’s bench. He was released by Boston during training camp and joined Huntsville of the National Basketball Development League.