Losing Took Its Toll On Hall Of Famer Mitch Richmond While Playing For Sacramento Kings

Shandel Richardson | Aug 3, 2024

February 23, 2020; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors great Mitch Richmond before the game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Mitch Richmond is often considered a forgotten NBA superstar.

While he put up impressive numbers, he did it mostly in anonymity while playing for the Sacramento Kings. He was a six-time All-Star from 1991-92 to 1997-98, but was rarely showcased on national television.

"My whole career, I felt like I was pretty much underrated a little bit and I think that came at that particular time," said Richmond, who averaged 21 points during his Hall of Fame career. "Now, it's truly different because you can watch a game anywhere you're at. Back then, being in Sacramento, it was one of those small-market places and it didn't get the attention and honestly we didn't need attention. We were playing so bad." 

The Kings were 211-306 during the Richmond era, wasting his strong seasons. They fell to the Seattle Supersonics in the first round in 1996 in their only playoff appearance.

He struggled because wasn't used to losing. He was traded to the Kings after a contract dispute took him from a promising situation with the Golden State Warriors. At the time, the Warriors were a budding team led by Richmond, Chris Mullin and Tim Hardaway.

The Kings were in the middle of rebuilding when Richmond arrived.

"When I started playing basketball in the 10th grade, I never had a losing season as I did in Sacramento," Richmond said. "It was very difficult and very tough each and every year to go through those growing pains." 

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day Hoops. he can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

Follow our coverage and updates on Facebook

X: @BackInTheDayNBA