Florida Basketball star Will Richard is off to a great rookie campaign with the Golden State Warriors. After winning a national title with the Gators back in April, Richard went late in the 2nd round of the NBA Draft but has managed to carve out early minutes with Golden State.
Since most Gator fans only get to watch Richard via online clips, we wanted to get a better idea of how he has been able to make the jump so seamlessly. So we reached out to our Fansided sister site for the Golden State Warriors, Blue Man Hoop, and spoke with their site expert, Peter O'Keefe, to get a better feel for how Richard is doing.
Will Richard is doing great with the Golden State Warriors
Hail Florida Hail - Richard fell deep in the draft. Did Warriors fans even raise an eyebrow when he was drafted?
Peter O'Keefe - There was more eyebrow-raising from the fact the Warriors initially traded back from 41 to the 52nd and 59th picks, having taken Australian forward Alex Toohey with that first pick in the 50s. When you get to that point of the draft, you know there’s always a possibility of deals being made between teams.
But unless you’re a massive collegiate fan, Richard wasn’t necessarily on the radar and came in as somewhat of an unknown to fans despite his four-year college career and national championship with the Gators.
HFH - How common is it under Steve Kerr for a late 2nd round guy to emerge this quickly?
PO - Funnily enough it’s fairly common now, albeit there’s legitimate question marks on the long-term NBA futures of Trayce Jackson-Davis and Quinten Post. Both big men had huge impact as rookies after being taken 57th and 52nd overall in back-to-back drafts, but their roles appear to be fading now with the addition of Al Horford.
Richard has certainly come into the rotation sooner which is clearly evidence of his strong training camp and the trust that Kerr already has in him. He also has a major edge as a two-way player capable of impacting on both ends of the floor, rather than Jackson-Davis and Post who each have far bigger limitations.
HFH - What role is he filling that Golden State was missing last year?
PO - Richard is finding more minutes than Gary Payton II right now, so it’s essentially an upgrade at that defensive guard/wing spot. Richard is already a far more willing and capable 3-point shooter than Payton, meaning he should only continue to see more minutes than the beloved veteran.
Both might find themselves out of the rotation when Moses Moody is off a minutes restriction and De’Anthony Melton is back from his ACL injury, but teams are very rarely fully healthy throughout a season so an opportunity for Richard should still exist.
HFH - What has surprised Golden State fans the most about Richard’s play?
PO - I think it’s the comfort level more than anything. He looks like he belongs on an NBA floor which is rare to say for a lot of rookies, let alone a 56th overall pick. Richard clearly has a confidence in his own game that belies his late draft selection, with that perfectly epitomized by a huge pull-up three in transition that he had in the fourth-quarter against the Denver Nuggets on Thursday.
It’s also rare for a rookie to come in straight away and adapt to Steve Kerr’s system, so that’s a surprising element that can certainly be owed to Richard’s college experience.