Roster - Orlando Magic

Strengths

• Good size for his position
• 7-foot wingspan
• Aggressive offensive player who can score points in bunches
• Good 3-point shooter
• At 20 he’s more mature than average freshmen
• Good athlete

 

Weaknesses

• Working on being more consistent off the bounce
• Decision-making
• Shot selection needs tightening
• Needs to get bigger and stronger

 

NLL projection: Richardson placed his name in the Draft but didn’t sign with an agent, so he has the option of returning to school by May 25, 10 days after the Chicago Combine. But his stock has been raising, and some analysts believe he’s a first-round pick.

 

2015-16 Season
Richardson was chosen MVP of the NCAA tournament’s Midwest Regional and also earned a spot on the Atlantic Coast Conference All-Freshman team after helping lead Syracuse to an improbable Final Four bid. Some critics had questioned whether Syracuse deserved a berth in the NCAAs, but thanks in part to the efforts of Richardson, who scored 21 points in an opening-round game against Dayton and 23, including 21 in the second half, in an Elite Eight matchup with ACC rival Virginia, the Orange more than proved they belonged. Richardson wound up starting all 37 games, and only two players in Syracuse history started more—Derrick Coleman and Billy Owens (38).

 

Key statistics: 13.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.2 spg, 2.2 tpg, 34.4 mpg, .369 FG, .353 3PT, .720 FT

 

Cool statistic: Richardson shot 35 percent from 3 in all games, but in 18 ACC regular-season games, he improved that number to nearly 42 percent.

 

Reminds me of: Nick Young

 

What Insiders Say
Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim
“He's a big-time shooter. He has a lot of confidence in himself on offense. And he's been good right from the jump, right from the first game. He's been probably … you could say our most consistent player, shooter this year.”

 

What Outsiders Say
Dayton coach Archie Miller
“In watching film he's a very talented guy. He's not like a freshman. He's got a green light. He's big. And he's a problem. I thought for most of the game we had bodies in front of him. Early in the game, he got going. Made a couple of 3s and then a couple of drives, and I thought he was very aggressive the whole game. You have three guys out there that can really get going, and it only takes one guy to sort of change the game a little bit. And I thought he was their game-changer.”