Matt Bonner, formerly known as the “Red Mamba,” officially announced his retirement today.
Using the same media platform that Kevin Durant did to announce joining the Warriors, as well as Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash’s retirement; The Players’ Tribune allowed Matt Bonner to make a retirement video that is a perfect representation of his career.
See the video here:
That’s as Matt Bonner-y of a retirement video that you could possibly get, right?
The 2x Champion had a longer career than most (average NBA career: 4.8 years), he played 12 seasons in the NBA. 10 of those seasons with the Spurs, where he earned all of his recognition in the league.
Bonner’s career in a nutshell was made famous because of him being a 6’10 deep threat (41.4% 3P) and a red head, giving him the nickname the “Red Mamba.”
He never averaged over 24 minutes per game in a season, coming off the bench for 86% of his total games played. In his 12 season career, Bonner ended his career averaging 5.8 PPG and 3.0 RPG.
The Red Mamba managed to play until the age of 35, and although he was never the best player on any of those San Antonio rosters and he never had much acknowledgment throughout his career, Bonner did have a very content resume.
At the end of Bonner’s career, he’s now got 5 Western Conference Finals appearances, he’s been a participant in the 2013 NBA Three-Point Shootout, 2010-11 NBA three-point percentage leader and he’s a 2x NBA Champion.
It’s highly doubted he’ll go do something as eccentric after his retirement like Darko Milicic (MMA Fighter) or Marc Blount (Owner of 2 Auntie Anne’s franchises), but one thing is forsure; he’ll continue to make coach Pop proud in all of his endeavors. And you never know, Popovich might need a new coach on the sidelines…on the other hand, word on the street is Wendy’s in San Antonio is also looking for a new owner.
