Kentucky commit Billy Richmond has skills that fit the future of basketball
Billy Richmond had a historic Saturday morning at Blake Arena on the campus of Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts.
And that’s a sentence that carries some weight, given that’s the location of the Spalding Hoophall Classic and the place where the game of basketball was invented.
Richmond — a 6-foot-5 wing who committed to head coach John Calipari and Kentucky in late December — went over the 1,000-point mark for his high school basketball career as part of a 67-62 win for his Camden (New Jersey) High School squad at the prestigious prep basketball showcase event.
He achieved this milestone with a game-high 26 points, which went along with four rebounds, three assists, two steals and no turnovers in 31 minutes.
“(Scoring) comes when you do the little things like rebound, getting defensive stops, steals. I just try to do that and the scoring just comes to me,” Richmond said afterward.
Richmond’s lone game at this year’s Hoophall Classic showcased the versatile skill set he will bring to Lexington later this year: He was 4-for-5 on 3-pointers, completed multiple and-ones through contact and threw down several highlight-reel dunks, including a breakaway windmill slam in the game’s final seconds.
A left-handed wing prospect with the ability to fill passing lanes and poke the ball loose from opponents, Richmond also did a credible job on the defensive end against a top college basketball prospect.
Richmond spent a healthy part of Saturday’s game going up against North Mecklenburg (North Carolina) High School senior Isaiah Evans, a 6-foot-6 small forward who has signed to play at Duke.
Evans led his team with 21 points and 10 rebounds and was a hub of offensive creation, but he found it difficult at times to overcome Richmond’s defense.
All in all, it was a big performance (especially in the second half) on a big stage from Richmond, who was a teammate at Camden last year with current Wildcats Aaron Bradshaw and D.J. Wagner.
“They mostly had the ball in their hands, so I just had to find my role,” Richmond said, reflecting on the change from last season to this one at Camden.
“This year, I found my role and I’m more of the main guy, so I’ve got to make everybody function right. So just being on ball more, getting my teammates involved, playing more point guard.”
Ranked as the No. 23 overall player in the 2024 recruiting class by the 247Sports Composite (with five-star status), Richmond was at best a tertiary option for Camden last year when they rolled into Hoophall with Bradshaw and Wagner in tow.
Now, Richmond is rightfully the face of the Panthers.
An example of this from Saturday’s win: Richmond took charge in the locker room at halftime to make sure Camden built upon its two-point halftime lead.
“I came in the locker room and was like, ‘Let’s pick it up. Our energy is not on,’” Richmond said. “I’m just trying to be a leader, first. Get my teammates involved.”
While he likely won’t get the chance to be teammates with Bradshaw and Wagner at Kentucky — ESPN’s latest NBA mock draft has both players as top-40 selections — Richmond is looking forward to his own experience in Lexington.
“It just felt like home. I’ve been there plenty of times, cool relationship with the coaches. I’ve got family out there, it’s just a cool bond,” Richmond said of what led him to pick Kentucky from a group of final schools that also included Alabama, LSU and Memphis.
“It fits my game style. Just fell in love with it the first day I was there.”
Camden coach says Richmond’s best basketball is ahead of him
The head coach shared by Bradshaw, Richmond and Wagner at Camden has plenty of basketball pedigree to his name.
Maalik Wayns was a McDonald’s All-American as a high schooler (an honor he told the Herald-Leader that Richmond is deserving of this year), before spending three years as a player at Villanova and eventually appearing in 29 NBA games.
So he knows exactly the challenge that was in front of Richmond on Saturday going up against a fellow blue blood commit.
“I think he took it on personally,” Wayns said. “... (Richmond) looked like he had an extra gear.”
As someone who’s been around Richmond a lot over the last two years — Richmond is originally from Memphis and played his first two years of high school basketball at East High School in that city — Wayns also said he noticed a change in Richmond’s on-court game following his commitment to Kentucky on Dec. 21.
After Richmond’s 26-point outburst Saturday, Wayns pointed to shotmaking when asked by the Herald-Leader which areas Richmond has improved the most in this season.
“Last year he was a defensive menace. He’s super athletic, but his shotmaking ability has come a long way. And it’s just going to keep getting better,” Wayns said.
Something else apparent Saturday was how well Richmond could fit into Calipari’s new-look offensive system at Kentucky.
The Wildcats’ up-tempo style of play this season — UK entered this weekend’s games with an adjusted tempo of 73.8, the 14th-highest in the nation — appears to pair well with Richmond, who can easily use his length to both wreak havoc on defense, which leads to fast-break offensive chances, as well as finish off those chances himself.
There’s also the key aspect of floor spacing that Richmond brings to the table: His four made 3s on Saturday came in different ways, from the catch-and-shoot variety to isolation situations.
It’s all part of a well-rounded, and still improving, package Richmond intends to bring to UK.
“He lives in the gym. He’s a gym rat. He wants to get better, so he’s going to keep getting a lot better,” Wayns added. “He’s just scratching the surface of what he’s going to be.”
This story was originally published January 14, 2024 at 6:55 AM.
