Did The Golden State Warriors Find Their Next Steph Curry?
Where do the Warriors keep finding these guys?
Nearly two decades ago, the Golden State Warriors drafted a skinny point guard from Davidson by the name of Stephen Curry.
Sure, he had the NBA lineage, but no one had any inkling that Del Curry's son was going to be anything more than a role player for a wayward Warriors franchise.
Four NBA Championships later, and Curry has revolutionized the sport, single-handedly shoving the league into the modern era of three balls and analytics.
Whether you think the league is better for it is a different discussion, but suffice it to say, the Warriors got everything they wanted and then some from Steph.
Wednesday night, Golden State showed off a different, underrated college guard, Will Richard.
Though he comes from a more basketball-rich program in Florida, he was arguably even more unheralded coming into the league than Curry was, and while it's a criminally small sample size, the lanky shooting guard may have shown Warriors fans that they have little to fear when Steph Curry decides to hang up his shoes.
I want to reiterate this is only Richard's first start in a regular season NBA game, but you have to wonder if this is like the Packers going from Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers.
Where do they keep finding these guys?
Richard put up 30 points and grabbed seven boards while shooting a blistering 5 for 8 from beyond the arc (62.5%), evoking memories of the Splash Brothers in the mid to late 2010s.
Am I saying Will Richard is the second coming of Steph Curry? Not at all.
But you have to admit, putting up a performance like this is impressive nonetheless.
Yes, many NBA players have started their careers hot only to falter once the lights get brighter, but Richard has already performed on the biggest stage in college, putting the team on his back in the National Championship game against Houston with a first-half outburst to keep the Gators' title hopes alive.
Everyone loves to say they discovered the next big thing, so buy all the Will Richard stock you can now.
It will never be cheaper than it is today, and I have a feeling the kid is a star in the making.