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Sports are full of superstitions. Few greater than jersey numbers. Sure, there are some powers that science can't explain -- like the power a man and his goat has against a baseball franchise in Chicago for example. Another power that cannot be explained is the strangeness that has directed this Utah Jazz team this season. In true tank oddity fashion the team has just released Andris Biedrins in favor of theoretical stretch big Erik Murphy. Murphy, who last played for Chicago (thanks Cubs curse) is moving onto the curse of the #33 jersey for the Jazz.
What's so special about the #33 Jersey? Why is it cursed? Some of the best NBA players have worn #33, like Larry Bird and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. No such luck in Utah. It's cursed not because some great legends used to wear that over their chests. No, it's cursed because only the worst Jazz players have worn it.
Bringing Murphy over is that Ghostbusters "crossing the streams" moment where you try something -- anything -- in order to defeat the super natural. In this case, it's to defeat a season that should be dedicated to the tank, but somehow isn't.
That's where #33 comes in.
Check out who has come and gone -- and what they did while they were here:
| Player | First | Seas | G | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | |||
| 1 | Ken Boyd | 1975 | 1 | 6 | 4.2 | 3.2 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.0 | ||
| 2 | Jim McElroy | 1976 | 4 | 277 | 27.5 | 11.5 | 2.4 | 4.0 | 1.1 | 0.3 | ||
| 3 | Mack Calvin | 1980 | 1 | 48 | 16.1 | 6.4 | 1.8 | 2.8 | 0.6 | 0.0 | ||
| 4 | Tom Boswell | 1980 | 2 | 99 | 18.3 | 7.8 | 4.0 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | ||
| 5 | Greg Deane | 1980 | 1 | 7 | 6.9 | 1.4 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | ||
| 6 | Mel Bennett | 1981 | 1 | 28 | 11.2 | 3.8 | 3.3 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.4 | ||
| 7 | Howard Wood | 1982 | 1 | 42 | 8.1 | 3.4 | 1.5 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.1 | ||
| 8 | Fred Roberts | 1985 | 2 | 110 | 12.2 | 6.1 | 2.1 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.1 | ||
| 9 | Scott Roth | 1988 | 2 | 42 | 6.5 | 2.5 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.0 | ||
| 10 | Walter Palmer | 1991 | 1 | 28 | 3.0 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | ||
| 11 | Bob Thornton | 1992 | 1 | 2 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | ||
| 12 | Aaron Williams | 1994 | 1 | 6 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | ||
| 13 | Chris King | 1999 | 1 | 8 | 5.3 | 0.5 | 1.4 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.1 | ||
| 14 | Mike Harris | 2013 | 1 | 20 | 11.3 | 4.2 | 1.7 | 0.3 | 0.8 | 0.4 | ||
| 15 | Erik Murphy | 2014 |
Can Murphy break the curse and be one of the only good players to wear this number? Or will Murphy contribute to the tank and help us lose otherwise winnable games?