Although it took the Golden State Warriors months to make a move this offseason, they were still able to improve their roster.
This didn’t just happen through free agency, but also through the draft.
Left without a first-round pick, they were forced to find hidden talent in the second round, and according to Blue Man Hoop’s Nick San Miguel, they may have done just that.
“(Will) Richard looked solid in the preseason, making a trio of 3-pointers and scoring 13 points in each of the team’s last two games which also saw him earn surprise starts,” San Miguel said Tuesday.
“Right now, Brandin Podziemski seems like the most logical other guard to have on the floor with superstar Steph Curry in the starting lineup. But if Podziemski struggles early on and Kerr decides he needs to shake things up, why not try Richard?”
Will Richard was the 56th pick in the 2024 NBA draft and won a championship in college with the Florida Gators.
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The Warriors have a logjam at the wing position, but guys like Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga have yet to solidify themselves as key rotational pieces.
Buddy Hield is as streaky a player as it gets, and Brandin Podziemski didn’t take the sophomore year leap the Warriors were hoping for.
Richard was a four-year collegiate player and averaged double digits every year.
In his senior season, he started forty games for the Gators, averaging 13.3 points per game, alongside an elite point guard, Walter Clayton Jr.
That experience playing alongside Clayton may translate into the league, with the opportunity to play with Stephen Curry.
Richard is the type to catch fire at any point in a game, something only Curry was able to do for the Dubs post-Klay.
An aggressive wing defender looking to earn minutes may be exactly what the Warriors need to get them over the hump.
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