After two seasons with the Golden State Warriors, Leandro Barbosa is headed back to the place where his NBA career began.
The 13-year veteran signed with the Phoenix Suns this offseason, where he first came into the league for the 2003-04 season out of Brazil. On Tuesday, Barbosa was officially introduced by the Suns, joining the franchise for the third time.
He played in Phoenix from 2003-10, and then again for the 2013-14 season.
In his two stints with the Suns, Barbosa donned No. 10. At his introductory press conference, he revealed he will be wearing No. 19 -- the same he sported with the Warriors -- this season for a special reason.
"I picked No. 19 because of Raja (Bell). He was a real mentor to me when I was young," said Barbosa.
"I picked No. 19 because of Raja. He was a real mentor to me when I was young." - @TheBlurBarbosa #BeepBeep pic.twitter.com/QB4FWUmI6s
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) July 19, 2016
Barbosa was teammates with Bell from the 2005-06 season, all the way until he was traded to Charlotte after 22 games in the 2008-09 season.
With the Warriors, Barbosa posted solid numbers off the bench. Over 134 regular season games, he averaged 6.7 points per game.
The veteran enjoyed his most team success ever with the Warriors as he won his first title. At Tuesday's press conference, Barbosa spoke about how excited he is to come back home to Phoenix.
"Phoenix will always be my home, ya know. Everything started here. My whole career -- I played eight seasons here already, and I love you guys, ya know," Barbosa said as he smiled at the podium. "There's a lot of new faces here, but I'm happy to be back."
"There's a lot of new faces here, but I'm very happy to be back." #BeepBeep
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) July 19, 2016
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Over his NBA career, Barbosa has averaged 11.0 points, 2.2 assists and 2.1 rebounds per game. He was named the NBA Sixth Man of the Year with Suns for the 2006-07 season.
