Kevin Johnson

Short Biography

Kevin Maurice Johnson (born March 4, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player and politician who served as the 55th mayor of Sacramento, California. He is the husband of educator Michelle Rhee. Elected in 2008 and reelected in 2012, Johnson is the first African American to serve in that office. Prior to entering politics, Johnson was a professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA), a point guard for both the Cleveland Cavaliers in his rookie year, then the Phoenix Suns for the next twelve seasons of his NBA career.During his 12-year playing career, Johnson was a three times NBA All-Star and four-time second team All-NBA selection, along with holding numerous records for the Phoenix Suns organization. At the University of California, Berkeley, Johnson was named a two-time All-Pac-10 Conference player and an honorable-mention All-American by the Associated Press.Johnson has a B.A. in political science from U.C. Berkeley that he completed after his initial retirement from the NBA. Since founding St. HOPE in 1989, Johnson has been active in education reform. As Mayor, Johnson launched two education initiatives, Stand UP and Sacramento READS!, to benefit students in Sacramento. Johnson also helped to save the Sacramento Kings basketball team from moving to Anaheim, and later, Seattle.