American basketball player (born 1965)
Mitchell James Richmond III (born June 30, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player. He played collegiately at Moberly Area Community College and Kansas State University. He was a six-time NBA All-Star, a five-time All-NBA Team member, and a former NBA Rookie of the Year. In 976 NBA games, Richmond averaged 21.0 points per game and 3.5 assists per game. Richmond was voted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014. His jersey No. 2 was retired in his honor by the Sacramento Kings, for whom he played seven seasons.
Early life.
Mitchell James Richmond III was born on June 30, 1965, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He attended Boyd H. Anderson High School in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida, where he excelled in basketball.
College career.
Richmond began his college career playing for the Moberly Area Community College Greyhounds. He scored 1,023 points from 1984 to 1986, before joining the Kansas State Wildcats.
One of the most recognizable players in Kansas State history, Mitch Richmond was a two-year letterman for head coach Lon Kruger from 1986 to 1988. He helped guide the Wildcats to a 45–20 (.692) record, including a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances and a trip to the 1988 NCAA Midwest Regional Final. His 1,327 points are the most by a player in a two-year career.
Professional career.
Golden State Warriors (1988–1991).
Richmond was drafted 5th overall in the 1988 NBA draft by the Golden State Warriors, following two years at Kansas State, where he averaged 20 points per game, and two years at Moberly Area Community College.
Richmond captured the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in the 1988–89 season, after averaging 22 points per game for the Warriors. He was a key part of Don Nelson's fast-paced offense, focusing on Richmond and teammates Tim Hardaway and Chris Mullin which was dubbed "Run TMC" (the initials of the players' first names and a play on the name of the popular rap group Run-DMC). In addition to the shooting he provided, he complemented Hardaway's passing and fast break skills and Mullin's shooting skills by slashing to the hoop as part of the Warriors' attack.
Sacramento Kings (1991–1998).
After three years of scoring 22-plus points a game in Golden State, Richmond, on November 1, 1991, was traded (along with Les Jepsen) to the Sacramento Kings during the 1991–92 season in exchange for the rights to Billy Owens, and became arguably the team's first star since the franchise moved to Sacramento in 1985. Staying with the Kings until 1998, Richmond was the team's leading scorer in each of his seven seasons there, averaging no fewer than 21.9 points a game each season. Between 1993 and 1998, Richmond was a fixture on the Western Conference's All-Star team, and he won MVP honors at the All-Star Game in Phoenix, in 1995. In the middle of his prime, Richmond was selected to the United States' Olympic team (Dream Team III), earning a gold medal in Atlanta. During his prime, Richmond was recognized as one of basketball's all-time best pure shooters.
Washington Wizards (1998–2001).
Richmond was traded by the Kings, along with Otis Thorpe, to the Washington Wizards for Chris Webber in May 1998, a move that keyed the Kings' transformation from perennial doormat to an elite title contender. However, things did not work out as well for Richmond. In three years with the Wizards, he lost a lot of the shooting touch he displayed as a King, and his days as a regular were numbered after missing half of the 2000–01 season. Richmond's departure from Washington coincided with the Wizards signing Richmond's perennial rival at the shooting guard position, Michael Jordan.
Los Angeles Lakers (2001–2002).
Richmond signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Lakers, where he played the final year of his career. Playing strictly off the bench, he averaged 4 points a game. He earned an NBA championship ring with the Lakers in 2002 but played sparingly in the postseason, logging 4 minutes overall. In game 4 of the finals, just seconds after making the last basket of his career, Richmond dribbled out the clock to win the title with the Lakers.
National team career.
Before coming to the NBA, he played for the U.S. national team at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, winning the bronze medal. He became a member of the team again at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. and won the gold medal along with David Robinson, who was also on the U.S. men's national basketball team in 1988.
In August 2010, Richmond played in the NBA Asia Challenge 2010 at Araneta Coliseum in Manila, an exhibition game which pitted NBA legends and NBA Development League players against Philippine Basketball Association stars and legends.
Personal life.
Mitch Richmond is the cousin of NFL defensive back Lardarius Webb.
Richmond and his wife Julie have three sons, Phillip, Jerin, and Shane Richmond, and he has a daughter, Tearra Gates, with Teala Jones. Shane died at age 20 in 2019 with no cause disclosed.
Phillip played basketball as a walk-on for the Oregon Ducks from 2014 to 2016.
Halls of Fame.
Richmond was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014, and inducted into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.
References.
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