CHICAGO — The newest member of the Spurs, Josh Richardson, already knew Dejounte Murray was a great player before he joined the Silver and Black.
Before the trade that sent him to San Antonio from Boston, Richardson says Murray was a big part of the Celtics' scouting when the two teams met earlier this season.
"He was a huge part of the scouting report when we [Boston] played him and he played well against us," Richardson said.
Murray scored 22 points and recorded 12 assists in San Antonio's Jan. 5 meeting against Boston and scored 29 points against the Celtics on Nov. 5.
Now wearing the same uniform with Murray and not on the receiving end of Murray's play, Richardson is impressed with his new teammate and what he brings to San Antonio.
" I can already see he's a leader for this team," Richardson said. "He's vocal. He's very locked in."
Murray's season is nothing short of amazing.
He's a first-time All-Star, is having career-highs in points per game at 20.0, in assists at 9.3, and in rebounds at 8.4 per game.
Murray has also become the franchise's new triple-double leader, passing team legend David Robinson.
But this isn't too surprising for Richardson. He says this is the norm for Murray, especially this season.
"He's been doing that night in and night out. I'm excited to see how that goes," Richardson says.
For Murray, the numbers and accolades are good but not what he envisions for this season.
He is focused on the big picture and it is not just simply a high draft pick or the Play-In game. His aim is to see this team make the playoffs.
"Hell yeah we're playing for the playoffs," Murray said.
And for Richardson, this just adds to his admiration of his new teammate and a no-brainer why Murray was selected to be an All-Star.
"He's an All-Star," Richardson said. "He's been great."
Twitter: @KENS5, @JeffGSpursKENS5