Matthew Robert Bonner (born April 5, 1980), also known as the Red Rocket or Red Mamba, is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player. Bonner played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

before being selected by the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...

with the 45th overall pick in the

2003 NBA draft The 2003 NBA draft was held on June 26, 2003, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The NBA announced that 41 college and high school players and a record 31 international players had filed as early-entry candidates ...

. During his career Bonner played for the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

and the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Southwest Division ( ...

with whom he won two NBA championships.

Early life

Born in

Concord, New Hampshire Concord () is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Hampshire and the seat of Merrimack County. As of the 2020 census the population was 43,976, making it the third largest city in New Hampshire behind Manchester and Nashua. The village of ...

, Bonner attended Concord High School, where he helped lead them to three state championships. Bonner was also the

Valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the highest-performing student of a graduating class of an academic institution. The valedictorian is commonly determined by a numerical formula, generally an academic institution's grade point average (GPA ...

of his graduating class.

College career

Bonner accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the

, where he played for coach Billy Donovan's

Florida Gators men's basketball The Florida Gators men's basketball team represents the University of Florida in the sport of basketball. The Gators compete in NCAA Division I's Southeastern Conference (SEC). Home games are played in the O'Connell Center, Exactech Arena at the ...

team from 1999 to 2003. In his four seasons, he amassed 1,570 points, 778 rebounds and 165 three-point field goals. As a senior in 2003, he was a first-team All-

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

(SEC) selection and an Associated Press honorable mention

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n. Bonner graduated with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

, with high honors, in

business administration Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...

and a 3.96

grade point average Grading in education is the process of applying standardized measurements for varying levels of achievements in a course. Grades can be assigned as letters (usually A through F), as a range (for example, 1 to 6), as a percentage, or as a numbe ...

(GPA). He won

Academic All-America The Academic All-America program is a student-athlete recognition program. The program selects an honorary sports team composed of the most outstanding student-athletes of a specific season for positions in various sports—who in turn are giv ...

n of the Year for the sport of basketball in both 2002 and 2003.

Professional career

Italy (2003–2004)

Bonner was selected with the 45th overall pick in the

by the

but was then traded to the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors did not have a roster spot available at the time and asked Bonner to play overseas and hone his skills with a verbal promise to make the team the following season. Bonner signed with Sicilia Messina of the

Italian league The Italic League or Most Holy League was an international agreement concluded in Venice on 30 August 1454, between the Papal States, the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Florence, and the Kingdom of Naples, following the Tr ...

Messina Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. Sicilia filed for

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

in the middle of the season and stopped paying its players. Many players left the team but Bonner continued to play and finished the year averaging 19.2 points and 9.3 rebounds.

Toronto Raptors (2004–2006)

In September 2004, Bonner signed a one-year deal with the

. On December 15, 2004, Bonner was ejected during a game against the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...

after attempting to block a

Kevin Garnett Kevin Maurice Garnett ( ; born May 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed KG by his initials, and the "Big Ticket" for his emphatic dunki ...

shot attempt, with Raptors fans giving him a standing ovation, chanting his name and high-fiving him on his way out. In 2004–05, he played in all 82 regular season games and averaged 7.2 points. He remains the only Raptors rookie to play all 82 games in a season. In August 2005, Bonner re-signed with the Raptors on a two-year deal.

San Antonio Spurs (2006–2017)

On June 21, 2006, Bonner was traded with

Eric Williams Eric Eustace Williams (25 September 1911 – 29 March 1981) was a Trinidad and Tobago politician who is regarded by some as the "Father of the Nation", having led the then British Trinidad and Tobago, British Colony of Trinidad and Tobago to m ...

and a second round draft pick to the

for

Rasho Nesterović Radoslav "Rasho" Nesterović ( sr-Cyrl, Радослав "Рашо" Нестеровић, sl, Radoslav "Rašo" Nesterovič; born May 30, 1976) is a Slovenian former professional basketball player. He holds citizenship in both Slovenia and Greece ...

and cash considerations. In his first season with the Spurs, he averaged 4.9 points in just 11.7 minutes per game, both of which were career lows for Bonner at that time. The team went on to win the NBA championship that season. In July 2007, Bonner re-signed with the Spurs on a three-year deal. On December 11, 2007, in a loss to the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

, Bonner recorded season-highs of 25 points and 17 rebounds. On December 7, 2009, Bonner scored a career high 28 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in a 104–101 loss to the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

. In July 2010, Bonner again re-signed with the Spurs on a multi-year deal. He went on to lead the NBA in three-point field goal percentage for 2010–11 after he shot 45.7%. Bonner free throw1

In 2011, Bonner starred in ''Fundamentals of the Game with Coach B'', a comedy web series hosted on the Spurs' official website. After a

social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...

campaign from his brother

Luke People *Luke (given name), a masculine given name (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Luke (surname) (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luke. Also known as ...

, Bonner participated in the 2013 NBA

Three-Point Shootout The Three-Point Contest is a National Basketball Association (NBA) contest held on the Saturday before the annual All-Star Game as part of All-Star Weekend. The 2019 iteration of the contest involved ten participants. From its introduction in 19 ...

during All-Star Weekend. He recorded a score of 19 in the first round to knock out Ryan Anderson (18) and Stephen Curry (17) and advanced to the final where he lost 20–23 to

Kyrie Irving Kyrie Andrew Irving (; lkt, Ȟéla, italic=no, ; born March 23, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was named the Rookie of the Year after being selected b ...

. Later that year, Bonner and the Spurs reached the

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

where they lost to the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Southe ...

in seven games. On June 15, 2014, Bonner won his second NBA championship after the Spurs defeated the Miami Heat 4–1 in the 2014 NBA Finals. On July 21, 2014, Bonner re-signed with the Spurs, On July 15, 2015, Bonner again re-signed with the Spurs. Bonner's final NBA game was played on April 13th, 2016 in a 96 - 91 win over the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conferenc ...

where he recorded 6 points,1 rebound, 1 assist and 1 block. He announced his retirement on January 6, 2017. On January 12, 2017, the Spurs jokingly "retired" Bonner's iconic flannel shirt in a locker room ceremony.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, 82 , , 0 , , 18.9 , , .533 , , .424 , , .789 , , 3.5 , , .6 , , .5 , , .2 , , 7.2 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 78 , , 6 , , 21.9 , , .448 , , .420 , , .829 , , 3.6 , , .7 , , .6 , , .4 , , 7.5 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", † , style="text-align:left;",

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

, 56 , , 0 , , 11.7 , , .447 , , .383 , , .711 , , 2.8 , , .4 , , .3 , , .2 , , 4.9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 68 , , 3 , , 12.5 , , .416 , , .336 , , .864 , , 2.8 , , .5 , , .2 , , .3 , , 4.8 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 81 , , 67 , , 23.8 , , .496 , , .440 , , .739 , , 4.8 , , 1.0 , , .6 , , .3 , , 8.2 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 65 , , 8 , , 17.9 , , .446 , , .390 , , .729 , , 3.3 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .4 , , 7.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 66 , , 1 , , 21.7 , , .464 , , style="background:#cfecec;", .457* , , .744 , , 3.6 , , .9 , , .4 , , .3 , , 7.3 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 65 , , 2 , , 20.4 , , .440 , , .420 , , .762 , , 3.3 , , .9 , , .2 , , .3 , , 6.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 68 , , 4 , , 13.4 , , .487 , , .442 , , .733 , , 1.9 , , .5 , , .3 , , .3 , , 4.2 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", † , style="text-align:left;",

, 61 , , 0 , , 11.3 , , .445 , , .429 , , .750 , , 2.1 , , .5 , , .2 , , .2 , , 3.2 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , style="text-align:left;" ,

, 72 , , 19 , , 13.0 , , .409 , , .365 , , .811 , , 1.6 , , .7 , , .1 , , .2 , , 3.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 30 , , 2 , , 6.9 , , .509 , , .441 , , .750 , , .9 , , .3 , , .2 , , .0 , , 2.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2" , Career , 792 , , 112 , , 16.9 , , .464 , , .414 , , .780 , , 3.0 , , .7 , , .4 , , .3 , , 5.8

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

† , style="text-align:left;",

, 9 , , 0 , , 2.8 , , .286 , , .250 , , 1.000 , , .3 , , .0 , , .2 , , .0 , , .8 , - , align="left" ,

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, align="left" ,

, 2 , , 0 , , 4.5 , , .667 , , .000 , , .000 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 2.0 , - , align="left" ,

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

, align="left" ,

, 5 , , 5 , , 20.0 , , .217 , , .231 , , 1.000 , , 3.2 , , .0 , , .6 , , .4 , , 3.0 , - , align="left" ,

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, align="left" ,

, 10 , , 0 , , 17.3 , , .432 , , .370 , , 1.000 , , 3.2 , , .4 , , .1 , , .3 , , 5.0 , - , align="left" ,

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

, align="left" ,

, 6 , , 0 , , 20.5 , , .480 , , .333 , , .800 , , 3.2 , , .3 , , .2 , , .2 , , 6.3 , - , align="left" ,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, align="left" ,

, 13 , , 0 , , 12.7 , , .313 , , .348 , , .600 , , 1.9 , , .7 , , .2 , , .3 , , 2.4 , - , align="left" ,

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

, align="left" ,

, 20 , , 1 , , 13.4 , , .475 , , .469 , , .833 , , 2.0 , , .3 , , .3 , , .3 , , 4.1 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

† , style="text-align:left;",

, 22 , , 2 , , 6.1 , , .476 , , .333 , , .750 , , .7 , , .5 , , .1 , , .0 , , 1.3 , - , align="left" ,

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

, align="left" ,

, 7 , , 0 , , 5.1 , , .200 , , .222 , , .000 , , .9 , , .1 , , .1 , , .1 , , .9 , - , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2" , Career , 94 , , 8 , , 11.0 , , .402 , , .355 , , .811 , , 1.7 , , .4 , , .2 , , .2 , , 2.8

Awards and achievements

*2013–14 NBA champion *2006–07 NBA champion *2010–11 NBA three-point field-goal percentage leader *2002–03 Honorable Mention All-American *2001–02 Honorable Mention All-American *2002–03 Academic All-American of the Year *2001–02 Academic All-American of the Year *2002–03 All-SEC First Team *2001–02 All-SEC Second Team *2000–01 All-SEC Third Team *2002–03 SEC three-point field-goal percentage leader *2002–03 All-SEC Academic *2001–02 All-SEC Academic *2000–01 All-SEC Academic *1998–99 NHIAA Champions – Concord HS *1997–98 NHIAA Champions – Concord HS *1996–97 NHIAA Champions – Concord HS

Post-NBA career

After retiring from professional basketball, Bonner joined San Antonio Spurs TV Broadcast as a studio analyst.

Personal life

Bonner and his wife Nadia have one daughter, Evangeline-Vesper Lynne Bonner (born June 21, 2009) and one son, August Bonner (born August 27, 2012). He has a younger brother,

, who was also a professional basketball player. Luke served as Matt's

best man A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony and performs the first speech at the wedding. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be ...

at his wedding. Bonner applied for

Canadian citizenship Canadian nationality law details the conditions in which a person is a national of Canada. With few exceptions, almost all individuals born in the country are automatically citizens at birth. Foreign nationals may naturalize after living in Ca ...

in February 2009, but did not qualify, due to the amount of time he spent outside the country. Bonner is a

sandwich A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...

enthusiast. He has a

blog A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order ...

titled "The Sandwich Hunter: The Quest for the Hoagie Grail" in which he documents his search for the "world's best sandwich." He is also a fan of the sport of

curling Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take turns sliding ...

, due to discovering it on Canadian television during his tenure with the Toronto Raptors. During his tenure with the Toronto Raptors, he received the

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

the "Red Rocket" for his red hair and constant use of the public transit in Toronto, the

Toronto Transit Commission The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is the public transport agency that operates bus, subway, streetcar, and paratransit services in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, some of which run into the Peel Region and York Region. It is the oldest and largest ...

, whose slogan is "Ride the Rocket."

Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant ( ; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he spent his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely r ...

coined Bonner's other nickname, the "Red Mamba", on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

while live-

tweeting Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

in 2013 during a televised replay of his 81-point game against Bonner and the Toronto Raptors. After his contract with

New Balance New Balance Athletics, Inc. (NB), best known as simply New Balance, is one of the world's major sports footwear and apparel manufacturers. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, the multinational corporation was founded in 1906 as the New Balance Arch ...

expired, Bonner signed a basketball shoe deal with

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...

in January 2014. Bonner and his brother Luke run a

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

called the ''Rock On Foundation'', in which they look to support community involvement in

arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both hi ...

and

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

. In March 2016, Bonner was featured on the season-premiere episode of FYI's ''

Tiny House Nation ''Tiny House Nation'' is an American reality television series. It is a tiny house movement-inspired series which features renovation experts John Weisbarth and Zack Giffin who assist families around the country building their desired houses th ...

'', where he and his wife Nadia had a 276-sq.-foot house custom-built.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bonner, Matt 1980 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Canada American expatriate basketball people in Italy American men's basketball players Basketball players from New Hampshire Centers (basketball) Chicago Bulls draft picks Florida Gators men's basketball players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Power forwards (basketball) Sportspeople from Concord, New Hampshire San Antonio Spurs players Toronto Raptors players

Early life

College career

Professional career

Italy (2003–2004)

Toronto Raptors (2004–2006)

San Antonio Spurs (2006–2017)

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Awards and achievements

Post-NBA career

Personal life

See also

References

External links