| On
Thursday night, March 19, Sports Gallery partnered with The Scottsdale Mondrian
and Muze Clothing for a unique event combining an exclusive autograph signing
with J-Rich and Matt, a very cool fashion show and a thumping After Party.
Jason
Richardson was drafted by The Golden State Warriors with the 5th overall pick
in the 2001 NBA Draft out of Michigan State University, where he won an NCAA Championship.
J-Rich entered the conscious of many NBA fans at the 2002 NBA All-Star Weekend
by capturing the NBA.com Slam Dunk Contest. He then became the only player other
than Michael Jordan to win back-to-back dunk contests by repeating the title in
2003. Over the past few seasons in the NBA, Richardson has improved his all-around
game to match his exceptional athleticism. In 2006/07 he helped lead the Warriors
to their first play-off appearance in 12 seasons. No only that but they knocked
off the #1 seeded Dallas Mavericks in one of the biggest upsets in NBA history.
Jason is now working his basketball magic in Phoenix but to many Golden State
fans he'll always be remembered as a key Warrior during their magical "We
Believe" Season. Matt
Barnes (born in Santa Clara, CA) was once the definition of a "journeyman"
player. Drafted by Memphis in 2002, Barnes also did short stints in Cleveland,
Seattle, L.A. (Clippers), Sacramento, and Philadelphia. But all that changed when
Barnes signed with Golden State as a training camp invitee in October, 2006. A
few months later, on December 26, 2006, Barnes hit 7 three-point field goals to
tie a Warriors franchise record (later that same season broken by Jason Richardson).
During that 2006-07 season, Barnes went on to make an impressive 106 three-pointers.
Matt also added a strong 2007 post-season, with 11.1 ppg and 5.7 rpg in eleven
playoff games and helped the #8 seed Warriors take down the #1 seed Mavericks
in what many call the greatest upset in NBA play-off history. So impressive was
Barnes in 2006/07 that he was named the Warriors team captain (along with Stephen
Jackson and Baron Davis) for the 2007/08 season. And in 2008/09, Barnes is contributing
big time to the Suns and their play-off push. |