Mitch Richmond

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Mitchell James ("Mitch") Richmond (born June 30, 1965 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida) is a retired American basketball player in the National Basketball Association. He played collegiately at Kansas State University.

[edit] NBA career

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 Junior College in Missouri. Before joining the NBA, Richmond also competed in the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul.

Richmond captured the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in the 1988-89 NBA season, after averaging 22 points per game for the Warriors. He was a key part of Don Nelson's fast-paced offense, which was dubbed "Run TMC" after the first names of its three main components, Tim Hardaway, Mitch, and Chris Mullin, respectively. The trio were named after the influential 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.

After three years of scoring 22+ points a game in Golden State, Richmond was traded to the Sacramento Kings during the 1991-92 season in exchange for Billy Owens, and became arguably the team's first star since the franchise moved to Sacramento in 1991. Staying with the Kings until 1998, Richmond was the team's leading scorer in each of his 7 seasons there, averaging no fewer than 21.9 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.

Richmond was traded by the Kings, along with Otis Thorpe, to the Washington Wizards for Chris Webber in May of 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 ended his career as a Los Angeles Laker. 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. Richmond is now a scout for the Golden State Warriors.

[edit] Effects on NBA

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Richmond is one of only seven players in NBA history to average at least 21 points per game for his first 10 seasons – along with Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, Oscar Robertson, Shaquille O'Neal and Allen Iverson.^{[citation needed]} He was also one of the most accurate long range shooters in league history, making 1,326 3-pointers in his career, which places him 9th all-time in career three-point field goals made.

Richmond is the Kings' franchise's third leading scorer. For his efforts, his #2 was retired by the club in 2003.

Richmond graced the cover of a game in the NBA Live series, being featured on NBA Live 97.

[edit] External links

• NBA.com summary
• Basketball-Reference

v • d • e 1988 Olympic Bronze Medalists Men's Basketball – United States Mitch Richmond | Charles Smith IV | Vernell Coles | Hersey Hawkins | Jeff Grayer | Charles D. Smith | Willie Anderson | Stacey Augmon | Dan Majerle | Danny Manning | J.R. Reid | David Robinson | Coach: John Thompson

v • d • e 1996 Olympic Champions Men's Basketball – United States Charles Barkley | Penny Hardaway | Grant Hill | Karl Malone | Reggie Miller | Hakeem Olajuwon | Shaquille O'Neal | Gary Payton | Scottie Pippen | Mitch Richmond | David Robinson | John Stockton | Coach: Lenny Wilkens