Run TMC was the high-scoring trio of Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond and Chris Mullin.
Golden State missed the playoffs the next season, but in 1990-91 the team entered Mullin’s golden era with the Warriors. Second-year rookie point guard Tim Hardaway, Richmond and Mullin created “Run-TMC” (Tim, Mitch and Chris). A take off of the popular rap group Run-DMC, the trio ran a fast-paced offense under coach Nelson and was the highest-scoring threesome in the NBA.
The Warriors began the season with a 162-158 win and upset the Midwest Division champion San Antonio Spurs in the opening round of the playoffs. The season ended in a furiously paced and high-scoring series loss to the eventual Western Conference champs, Los Angeles Lakers.
Mullin continued to improve his game and was named to the All-NBA First Team in 1991-92. He finished sixth in the voting for the league’s Most Valuable Player award and had a 25.6 scoring average, which was third in the league. He joined Chamberlain as the only players in franchise history to average 25 points or more in four straight seasons and by year’s end, was ranked among the Warriors’ all-time top 10 in 16 different categories, including points, scoring average, assists, and steals.
Mullin, who had become a bona fide fitness freak after his rehab stint, led the league in minutes played (3,346) for the second straight season. He also made his fourth straight All-Star appearance. The team had replaced Richmond with Lithuanian star Sarunas Marciulionis and improved to 55-27. Despite losing a disappointing first-round series to the Seattle SuperSonics, the Warriors seemed in good shape.
Mullin was also at the peak of his career. At the end of that season, he played with the 1992 Olympic Team known as the “Dream Team,” led by NBA all-time greats Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Bird.
However, in 1992-93 injuries beset Mullin and the team. He played only 46 games after tearing the collateral ligament in his right thumb. The team slipped to 34-48 and continued to slump, save a one-year aberration in 1993-94 when the team finished 50-32 with rookie Chris Weber, who would last only one season in Golden State after a personal dispute with Nelson.
But Mullin never stopped working or allowed it to break his spirit. He garnered the respect of the fans and media alike for his professionalism and dignity. And when he was ultimately traded before the 1997-98 season to the contending Indiana Pacers, who were coached by Bird, many in the Bay Area were delighted for him.
“There should be an unwritten good-soldier clause in every great player’s contract: You lay your guts out on the line for us every night and if the team falls into general disrepair and disrepute, we’ll try to move you to a team that can showcase your talents, for the good of the entire sport,” penned one sportswriter in the Chronicle after the announcement of Mullin’s trade to Indiana.
He played three seasons with the Pacers and led the NBA in 1997-98 in free-throw percentage (.939) and ranked third in 3-point percentage (.440). In 1999-2000, Mullin led the Pacers in 3-point percentage (.465) which was second in the NBA. He concluded his Pacer career by appearing in three games of the 2000 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers.
However, Golden State was home and he returned in 2001 for his last season in the NBA to play for the Warriors. The franchise leader in games played said, “I came here to play and help these young guys.” He stayed after his playing days as well, joining the front office before the 2002-03 season as a special assistant, a role he held until 2009.
Mullin then moved on to try his hand as an NBA analyst for ESPN from 2009-13. During that stint, Mullin was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame not once, but twice — as a part of the 1992 U.S. Olympic “Dream Team” in 2009 and again as an individual in 2011.
After his time on ESPN, he became an executive for the Sacramento Kings from 2013-15 before being hired by his alma mater, St. John’s, as its new coach on April 1, 2015 before stepping down from that position in April of 2019.