Mal Richardson

[pearl31]

Disclaimer: It's obviously premature to proclaim much at all after two exhibition games.

That said, I'm really, really impressed with Malachi. His ability as a shooter (gorgeous stroke) goes without saying. But his rebounding, passing, ball handling and overall hustle and energy really have me excited. I read different posters on here who watched him in high school and warned us that he's but a one-trick pony with no real desire to do much of anything.

Here's to hoping he continues to impress vs the real teams.

 

[iommi]

He clearly has improved his iso game and his ability to create off the bounce. He looks improved in a myriad of ways,really, i.e.: his defense, rebounding, passing...and yes, overall effort. I think Francis may have been right when he suspected that MR was a little bored his senior year in high school. I hope this new model Mali continues to show up.

 

[jekelish]

His all around game has definitely surprised me. Always knew he was a solid athlete and good shooter, but so far he's showing a lot more ability in other areas than I was anticipating this early in his career. He's going to be better than I was expecting this season, for sure.

 

[Brooky03]

Here's hoping he's not OAD... for purely selfish reasons.

I've been really impressed with his passing.

 

[iommi]

Here's hoping he's not OAD... for purely selfish reasons.

I've been really impressed with his passing.

What is OAD? One Awesome Dude? LOL.

 

[tee1222]

I read different posters on here who watched him in high school and warned us that he's but a one-trick pony with no real desire to do much of anything.

I missed most of those posts. Would rather trust what I saw first hand. Kid's a gamer and wants to win.

 

[CaliCuse]

Here's hoping he's not OAD... for purely selfish reasons.

I've been really impressed with his passing.

I presume that OAD means "overland done but thats the goal for every top kid coming to a top program.$ is king and depending on the background of these kids it may mean a break out from poverty for themselves and family. Very few will stay longer if that is their background story unless they have a real want for education. That is rare.

 

[Jack Hall]

Here's hoping he's not OAD... for purely selfish reasons.

I've been really impressed with his passing.

If hes not OAD, it is going to be a blast watching Mal, Lydon, Paschal, and Battle play together! Could be 4 future pros!

 

[rrlbees]

Nicest looking rotation on his shot I've seen in ages. (This is a serious comment).

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Here's hoping he's not OAD... for purely selfish reasons.

I've been really impressed with his passing.

He gone!

 

[Spock344]

Me-lichi some Richardson!

 

[Jack Hall]

Nicest looking rotation on his shot I've seen in ages. (This is a serious comment).

How bout TCs rotation on his jumper? I think hes going to have a very very good season, but his release and rotation in 2 exhibs have not looked great imo...

 

[bevosu]

Nicest looking rotation on his shot I've seen in ages. (This is a serious comment).

Are you counting opponent's players?

 

[iommi]

I have more JBs opinion on TC. Having said that i think TC is as psyched as anyone to have more and hopefully better outside shooters on this years team. imo his % should be much higher this year w Mal, Lydon and G and KJ shooting it better and spacing the floor waayyy better

I am far from a TC hater but just wish people would acknowledge he is not a great shooter. He shoots in volume. What you said above about us spacing the floor better this year and helping his % is my hope as well.

 

[Jack Hall]

I am far from a TC hater but just wish people would acknowledge he is not a great shooter. He shoots in volume. What you said above about us spacing the floor better this year and helping his % is my hope as well.

I am no expert but over the years, at times, his form has looked outstanding to me...and other times it looks far from. My wild guess is he tries to have a real quick trigger and sometimes he just rushes the whole sequence starting from his legs up. Which just like the golf swing is a big no no

And thats why this season he should have a better %, if he gets more space he wont have to be as dependent on a quick elevation and release...

 

[kcsu]

Nicest looking rotation on his shot I've seen in ages. (This is a serious comment).

Looks like sweet D. One of the best strokes ever on the hill had that same stop and pop just beautiful release

 

[AlaskaSU]

Next to Bing/JB, Sweet D/Kid Kohls was certainly one of our best all-time backcourts. The General and Greg Monroe/Matt Roe, or Waiters/Triche/MCW/Scoop, too many good backcourts to choose from...

 

[Dave85]

He gone!

An exhibition game may not be the best indicator of this possibility.

 

[Cusefan0307]

The best thing about Mal is he is probably going to get a lot of catch and shoot opportunities because defenses will key on G and Cooney so much, at least at the start of the year. When teams realize he and Lydon are also excellent shooters I'm sure defensive gameplans will change, but you could see yesterday at the start of the game Florida Southern was keying on Cooney and Gbinije to start, and that lead to him getting wide open shots.

 

[CraigForth]

Over Briscoe

 

[br801]

Nicest looking rotation on his shot I've seen in ages. (This is a serious comment).

Steady Potatoes

 

[FrancoPizza]

If he continues to play at even 75% of this level when ACC schedule hits, it's a fair bet he'll be drafted.

 

[Cusefan0307]

If he continues to play at even 75% of this level when ACC schedule hits, it's a fair bet he'll be drafted.

People said this about Joseph last year against Carleton as well. I think Mal is going to be great, but we need to not have expectations that are unfair to the player as a freshman. He's going to have a couple of 2-10's that people will complain about.

 

[jekelish]

People said this about Joseph last year against Carleton as well. I think Mal is going to be great, but we need to not have expectations that are unfair to the player as a freshman. He's going to have a couple of 2-10's that people will complain about.

He could have a 7 of 10 night and some people would still find reasons to complain, I'm sure.

 

[SoBristol]

People said this about Joseph last year against Carleton as well. I think Mal is going to be great, but we need to not have expectations that are unfair to the player as a freshman. He's going to have a couple of 2-10's that people will complain about.

Sure he will have off games, and we haven't seen him against a good defender who matches up well in size.
But I don't see the comparison with what Joseph did in one exhibition game. Joseph was a top 75 recruit, weighing maybe 170 lbs. Richardson looks the part (meaning, he isn't a skinny kid). He is showing a well-rounded game (rebounding, passing, ball-handling), in addition to good form, elevation and range on his jumper. Did not look like any fluke.