Raja Bell
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| Position | Shooting guard/Small forward |
|---|---|
| Height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Weight | 204 lb (93 kg) |
| Team | Phoenix Suns |
| Jersey | #19 |
| Born | September 19, 1976 Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands |
| Nationality | American |
| High school | Miami Killian |
| College | Boston University Florida International |
| Draft | Not drafted, 1999 |
| Pro career | 2001–present |
| Former teams | Philadelphia 76ers (2001-02) Dallas Mavericks (2002-03) Utah Jazz (2003-05) |
| Awards | 2006-07 All-Defensive First Team 2007-08 All-Defensive Second Team |
Raja Bell (born September 19, 1976 in Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands) is an American professional basketball player who currently starts at shooting guard for the NBA's Phoenix Suns. Bell is well known for his defense and three-point shooting.
Bell was born in Saint Croix, in the U.S. Virgin Islands and grew up in the greater Miami, Florida area attending Miami Killian Senior High School. He began his college career at Boston University, but after two seasons he transferred to Florida International University in Miami. Bell went undrafted out of college. He signed as a free agent with the San Antonio Spurs on August 2, 2000, but never played a game for them. He was eventually released, and signed with the Philadelphia 76ers on April 16, 2001. He played limited minutes in the final five of the Sixers' games in the 2000-01 regular season, but saw action in 15 of the team's 23 playoff games. The little-used Bell starred in Game 7 of the 2001 Eastern Conference Finals, scoring in double figures and rallying the Sixers from an early deficit against the Bucks as the 76ers won easily. He played in all five games for the 76ers in the 2001 NBA Finals.
Bell played in 74 games with the Sixers in the 2001-02 NBA season, averaging 3.4 points per game, and played in three of the team's five playoff games as the Sixers suffered a five-game playoff series loss to the Boston Celtics.
On October 1, 2002, Bell signed as a free agent with the Dallas Mavericks, and he averaged 3.1 points in 15.6 minutes per game. For the first time in his NBA career, he gained extensive starting experience, starting in 32 of the 75 games he played.
Bell averaged 5.7 points and 3.0 rebounds per game in 17 post-season games with the 2002 Mavericks as the team advanced to the Western Conference Finals.
On September 26, 2003, Bell signed with the Utah Jazz, and enjoyed what had been his most successful season since entering the NBA. Bell played in all 82 of the Jazz's games, and despite starting in only four of them, he posted career highs with 11.2 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 24.6 minutes per game. In the 2004-05 season he slightly improved upon these stats with 12.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game, despite playing in only 63 games.
Prior to the 2005-06 season, Bell signed with the Phoenix Suns. Bell responded to the presence of Steve Nash and became an extremely solid contributor. He started in all 79 games he played in, and finished the 2005-06 season averaging 14.7 points per game in 37.5 minutes per game.
Bell also hit a career high 44.2% of his 3-point field goal attempts during the 2005-06 season. He was chosen to participate in the 2006 NBA Footlocker Three-Point Shootout, but did not partcipate due to a family illness and was replaced by Gilbert Arenas.
One of the most notable incidents of Bell's career occurred in the 2006 NBA Playoffs on May 2, 2006, in Game 5 of a first round series against the Los Angeles Lakers. Bell clotheslined Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant on a hard foul, resulting in an ejection (with 7:33 left to play in the game).[1] In the postgame press conference, Bell explained that he was frustrated by an earlier elbow to the jaw from Bryant. "It's a personal thing when someone continually hits you in the face. That's the only way I can put it. I've been playing as hard as I can play. I've been trying to do a good job, I've been trying to be what my team needs me to be, and I continually get hit in my face. There doesn't seem to be any boundaries or limitations for what he's allowed to do to me, and at that point, I kind of lost my cool and I took it into my own hands." Bell was suspended for one game after his clothesline. The Suns eventually won the series in 7 games.[2]
During the next round of the 2006 NBA Playoffs, Bell demonstrated his clutch abilities in Game 5 with a last second three-pointer in overtime against the Los Angeles Clippers to tie the game and send it into double-overtime, where the Suns eventually pulled away to win and go up 3 to 2 in the series. In Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals against the Dallas Mavericks, midway through the fourth quarter, Bell sustained a calf injury which forced him to miss the rest of the game, as well as the next two games of the series. Bell returned in Game 4 to help the Suns tie the series at two games apiece, though they eventually fell to the Mavericks.
On January 5, 2007, Bell was suspended one game without pay for kicking Andrea Bargnani in a road game against the Toronto Raptors two days earlier.[3]
Bell finished the 2006-07 season with 205 total three-point shots made, tying the Washington Wizards' Gilbert Arenas for the league lead.[4]
His jersey number 19, which he wore while playing for the Spurs, Jazz, and now the Suns, is based on the date of his birthday. He wore 11 in his first three seasons with the 76ers and Mavericks.
[edit] Personal life and family
On May 2, 2007, Bell's wife, Cindy, gave birth to their first child, Dia, by c-section six hours before tip-off of Game 5 against the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1st round of the 2007 NBA Playoffs.[5] Bell had 8 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists in that game which the Suns won 119-110, closing the series at 4-1.
Bell has been a vegetarian since early childhood and appeared on the ballot for PETA's 2007 "World's Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrity" poll.[6][7]
[edit] Notes
- ^ Haller, Doug. "Bell's foul is cause for great concern", The Arizona Republic, May 3, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-04-29.
- ^ Coro, Paul. "Bell ringers: Raja blasts Kobe", The Arizona Republic, May 4, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-04-29.
- ^ "NBA suspends Bell for kicking Bargnani", Associated Press, January 5, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-07-31.
- ^ 2006-07 NBA Expanded Standings and Leaders. Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-04.
- ^ Raja Bell welcomes his champion son : Celebrity Baby Blog
- ^ Young, Bob. "Raja's beef? There is none", The Arizona Republic, June 21, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-04.
- ^ Carrie Underwood and The Tonight Show’s Kevin Eubanks Voted World’s Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrities. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (2007). Retrieved on 2007-08-04.
[edit] External links
- Raja Bell Info Page at NBA.com
- Raja Bell Statistics at Basketball-Reference.com
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