NBA
Raja Bell Earned Nearly $37 Million in the NBA and Is Now Making Fans a Different Way
Jake Elman wrote for Sportscasting between 2020 and 2022, after writing for UPI, Gannett, MLB Advanced Media, and The Palm Beach Post. As a member of the Football Writers Association of America, Jake specialized in covering college football, the NFL, and sports media for Sportscasting. A former college football beat writer and podcast host, Jake is also a voter for the Fred Biletnikoff Award. Originally born and raised in New York, Jake is a Florida Atlantic University journalism graduate who is inspired by sports, ionate about his work, and enjoys reading the work of Jay Mariotti, Joe Posnanski, and Peter King. Jake lives in South Florida with his two dogs, Jack and Karma, and believes they are the key to fixing the New York Jets.
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Any NBA draft should look to Raja Bell.
Despite going undrafted out of Florida International, Bell carved out a long NBA career by using his skill set to his advantage. Bell never let going unselected stop him from becoming one of the league’s best 3-point shooters in his prime.
Over a decade after Bell played his final game in the NBA, what is the former sharpshooter doing now?
Raja Bell was an elite sharpshooter in his prime
If you were a defender who let Raja Bell get wide open to take a 3-pointer, you would probably look away the next time you saw the tape.
After playing his first three years as a reserve on the Philadelphia 76ers and Dallas Mavericks, Bell finally got his chance to play. Bell signed with Jerry Sloan and the Utah Jazz in 2003 and quickly became one of the league’s premier long-range shooters.
From the start of the 2003-04 season through his final game in the spring of 2012, Bell averaged 11.8 points per game and drilled 40.8% of his shots from behind the arc across 552 games and 435 starts for four teams.
Bell also drilled 46.6% of his 3-point shots in 68 career playoff games. According to Basketball-Reference, Bell earned $36.6 million in the NBA despite going undrafted.
Bell is best known for his time with the Phoenix Suns
Basketball fans of a certain age will best Raja Bell for his time with the Phoenix Suns.
In four seasons out west as the Suns’ shooting guard, Bell averaged 13.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.4 assists across 254 games. Bell started all of those games and drilled 42.2% of his 3-point shots.
Bell added 12.5 points and 3.3 rebounds, and he made 48.4% of his shots from the field. In 33 playoff games with the Suns, Bell connected on 48.3% of his shots from 3-point range.
Phoenix traded Bell, along with Boris Diaw and Sean Singletary, to the Charlotte Bobcats in December 2008 for Jared Dudley, Jason Richardson, and a second-round pick for the 2010 draft. The Suns used that selection, 46th overall, on Georgia Tech forward Gani Lawal.
Lawal got into one game with the Suns on Dec. 31, 2010. He currently plays in the Qatari Basketball League in Qatar.
Raja Bell is now building a fanbase through The Ringer
It has been over a decade since Raja Bell’s final NBA game, so many basketball fans are likely removed from his glory days.
That doesn’t mean they can’t find Bell in other ways. Bell co-hosts a segment on The Ringer NBA Show, a podcast released and produced through Bill Simmons’ website, with Logan Murdock.
Bell and Murdock co-host Real Ones, which releases every Monday and Thursday. In addition to discussing the latest news and notes, they often have a guest who drops in for a bit.
Stats and contract figures courtesy of Basketball-Reference
