Josh Richardson may be about to trade in the year-round sunshine of South Florida for the hardcore sports scene of Philadelphia, but he is grateful for the opportunity the Miami Heat gave him in the first four seasons of his career.
On Tuesday he took to his Instagram account to thank the Heat, their coaching staff and his now former teammates in Miami.
Richardson, a 6-foot-6, 200-pound guard, was chosen by the Heat in the second round of the 2015 NBA Draft with the 40th overall pick. His career got off to a slow start, as he averaged just 6.6 points a game in his rookie campaign.
But things slowly started to take off for him, as he bumped his scoring average to 10.2 in his second season and 12.9 in his third season.
This past season, he put up career-highs in scoring (16.6 per game), rebounds (3.6 per game) and assists (4.1 a game), while playing 34.8 minutes per game and shooting 35.7 percent from the field.
He is set to join a Philadelphia 76ers squad that boasts 2017-18 NBA Rookie of the Year in Ben Simmons, All-NBA Second Team and All-Defensive Second Team selection Joel Embiid and new addition Al Horford, a five-time NBA All-Star. The Sixers are already being considered as one of the favorites to win the 2020 NBA championship.