Mitchell James Richmond III (born June 30, 1965) is an American former professionalbasketball player. He played collegiately atMoberly Area Community College[1] andKansas State University. He was a six-timeNBA All-Star, a five-timeAll-NBA Team member, and a formerNBA 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 theNaismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014.[2] His jersey No. 2 wasretired in his honor by theSacramento Kings, for whom he played seven seasons.
Mitchell James Richmond III was born on June 30, 1965, inFort Lauderdale, Florida. He attendedBoyd H. Anderson High School inLauderdale Lakes, Florida, where he excelled inbasketball.
Richmond began his college career playing for theMoberly Area Community College Greyhounds. He scored 1,023 points from 1984 to 1986, before joining theKansas State Wildcats.
One of the most recognizable players in Kansas State history, Mitch Richmond was a two-yearletterman for head coachLon 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 the1988 NCAA Midwest Regional Final. His 1,327 points are the most by a player in a two-year career.[3]
Richmond was drafted 5th overall in the1988 NBA draft by theGolden State Warriors, following two years atKansas State, where he averaged 20 points per game, and two years at Moberly Area Community College.
Richmond captured theNBA Rookie of the Year Award in the1988–89 season, after averaging 22 points per game for the Warriors. He was a key part ofDon Nelson's fast-paced offense, focusing on Richmond and teammatesTim Hardaway andChris Mullin which was dubbed "Run TMC" (the initials of the players' first names and a play on the name of the popular rap groupRun-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-plus points a game in Golden State, Richmond, on November 1, 1991,[4] was traded (along withLes Jepsen) to theSacramento Kings during the1991–92 season in exchange for the rights toBilly Owens,[5] 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 theWestern Conference'sAll-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 inAtlanta. During his prime, Richmond was recognized as one of basketball's all-time best pure shooters.[6]
Richmond was traded by the Kings, along withOtis Thorpe, to theWashington Wizards forChris 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 the2000–01 season. Richmond's departure from Washington coincided with the Wizards signing Richmond's perennial rival at the shooting guard position,Michael Jordan.
Richmond signed as a free agent with theLos Angeles Lakers, where he played the final year of his career. Playing strictly off the bench, he averaged 4 points a game. He earned anNBA championship ring with the Lakers in2002 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.
Before coming to the NBA, he played for theU.S. national team at the1988 Summer Olympics inSeoul, South Korea, winning thebronze medal. He became a member of the team again at the1996 Summer Olympics inAtlanta,Georgia, U.S. and won the gold medal along withDavid 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 atAraneta Coliseum inManila, an exhibition game which pitted NBA legends andNBA Development League players againstPhilippine Basketball Association stars and legends.[7]
Mitch Richmond is the cousin ofNFL defensive backLardarius Webb.[8]
Richmond and his wife Julie have three sons, Phillip, Jerin, and Shane Richmond, and he has a daughter, Tearra Gates, with Teala Jones.[9][10] Shane died at age 20 in 2019 with no cause disclosed.[11]
Phillip played basketball as awalk-on for theOregon Ducks from 2014 to 2016.[12]
Richmond was elected to theNaismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014, and inducted into theBay Area Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.[13]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| † | Won anNBA championship | * | Led the league |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988–89 | Golden State | 79 | 79 | 34.4 | .468 | .367 | .810 | 5.9 | 4.2 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 22.0 |
| 1989–90 | Golden State | 78 | 78 | 35.9 | .497 | .358 | .866 | 4.6 | 2.9 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 22.1 |
| 1990–91 | Golden State | 77 | 77 | 39.3 | .494 | .348 | .847 | 5.9 | 3.1 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 23.9 |
| 1991–92 | Sacramento | 80 | 80 | 38.7 | .468 | .384 | .813 | 4.0 | 5.1 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 22.5 |
| 1992–93 | Sacramento | 45 | 45 | 38.4 | .474 | .369 | .845 | 3.4 | 4.9 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 21.9 |
| 1993–94 | Sacramento | 78 | 78 | 37.1 | .445 | .407 | .834 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 23.4 |
| 1994–95 | Sacramento | 82* | 82* | 38.7 | .446 | .368 | .843 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 22.8 |
| 1995–96 | Sacramento | 81 | 81 | 36.4 | .447 | .437 | .866 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 1.5 | 0.2 | 23.1 |
| 1996–97 | Sacramento | 81 | 81 | 38.6 | .454 | .428 | .861 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 1.5 | 0.3 | 25.9 |
| 1997–98 | Sacramento | 70 | 70 | 36.7 | .445 | .389 | .864 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 23.2 |
| 1998–99 | Washington | 50* | 50* | 38.2 | .412 | .317 | .857 | 3.4 | 2.4 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 19.7 |
| 1999–00 | Washington | 74 | 69 | 32.4 | .426 | .386 | .876 | 2.9 | 2.5 | 1.5 | 0.2 | 17.4 |
| 2000–01 | Washington | 37 | 30 | 32.9 | .407 | .338 | .894 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 16.2 |
| 2001–02† | L.A. Lakers | 64 | 2 | 11.1 | .405 | .290 | .955 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 4.1 |
| Career | 976 | 902 | 35.2 | .455 | .388 | .850 | 3.9 | 3.5 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 21.0 | |
| All-Star | 5 | 1 | 22.0 | .439 | .500 | .500 | 2.4 | 2.6 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 11.4 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Golden State | 8 | 8 | 39.3 | .459 | .188 | .895 | 7.3 | 4.4 | 1.8 | .1 | 20.1 |
| 1991 | Golden State | 9 | 9 | 41.3 | .503 | .333 | .958 | 5.2 | 2.4 | .6 | .7 | 22.3 |
| 1996 | Sacramento | 4 | 4 | 36.5 | .444 | .348 | .800 | 4.3 | 3.0 | .8 | .0 | 21.0 |
| 2002† | L.A. Lakers | 2 | 0 | 2.0 | 1.000 | .000 | .500 | .5 | .0 | .0 | .0 | 1.5 |
| Career | 23 | 21 | 36.3 | .479 | .302 | .869 | 5.3 | 3.0 | 1.0 | .3 | 19.5 | |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | The Other Dream Team | Himself | Documentary about theLithuania men's national basketball team at the1992 Summer Olympics. | [14] |
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