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How Michigan State’s former players fared in the NBA this season

By Connor Muldowney

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Apr 8, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Jason Richardson (23) shoots foul shots against the Washington Wizards at Wells Fargo Center. The Wizards won 119-90. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

5. Jason Richardson, SG, Philadelphia 76ers

Jason Richardson was a lot of people’s favorite player that came through Michigan State. He had a Vince Carter-esque dunk game and even won two NBA Dunk Contests in his first few years in the league. It has been a while, however, since Richardson has been a prominent name in the league and that might have something to do with the fact he has been sidelined a lot in the past few seasons due to constant injuries.

This year it has been the knees, amongst other things, that have kept him out of play. J-Rich is a household name for Spartan fans and his meteoric rise in his first few years in the league was something that was fun to watch for everyone.

Up until about 2007-08, Richardson was one of the best players in the league, averaging around 18-21 points per game each season. His best season was in 2005-06 with Golden State where he averaged 23.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists while starting 75 games for the Warriors.

Those days are long gone, or so it seems, as the 34-year-old former dunk machine played in just 19 games this season for the 76ers, starting 15 of them, while averaging just 9.1 points per game — the first time in his career that he averaged less than 10 points per game.

If Jason can somehow get healthy and get a little spring back in his legs this offseason, he can get back to being a 13-15 points per game type of guy and make the 76ers a very happy franchise.

Next: Gary Harris, Denver Nuggets

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