Syracuse Freshman Kadary Richmond Impressing Teammates
As the season is quickly approaching, the Syracuse Men’s Basketball team has been preparing for a big bounce back year. Coach Jim Boeheim brought in six new freshmen in Frank Anselem, Arthur Cordes, Shane Feldman, Woody Newton, Chaz Owens, and Kadary Richmond. We will also be watching for redshirt freshmen John Bol Ajak, for the first time. The incoming players are all working hard to earn their minutes and have grabbed the attention of many coaches and teammates, in particular that of Buddy Boeheim.
Buddy joined Seth Greenberg this past week on Orange Nation on ESPN Radio. They discussed several topics such as, the upcoming season and how he has been able to improve his basketball game during the challenging times of the coronavirus pandemic. Buddy discussed his dedication towards being more aggressive and improving his jumper.
“Getting a quicker shot, better form. Consistent mechanics you know where I’m making a better percentage of shots. I feel like I’m shooting the ball better.”
Another topic Greenberg and Boeheim covered was the incoming freshmen and how many of them have caught the eye of Buddy. One of them in particular has been Kadary Richmond. From Brooklyn, N.Y., at 6-foot-5 Richmond can play both the guard and forward positions.
Richmond will be heavily relied upon to handle the ball and could be the primary reserve at either position. Richmond was ranked in ESPN’s Top 100 Recruiting Rankings at #91. He is a four-star recruit who really makes defenders play up tight on him. Richmond’s ability to hit the three-pointer is complimented well with his aggressive drives to the bucket. He is a very crafty player who will fit right into the Orange’s system.
“Kadary is a special talent, just has a tremendous feel for the game. Really crafty and can make plays. One of the best playmakers I have seen. Just really fun to play with,” said Boeheim.
Buddy acknowledged how Richmond has been battling it out with sophomore guard Joe Girard III in practice. Girard III is looking to have a big season ahead for the Orange, after leading the team last year in both assists and steals per game.
“I think he’s going to have a big year again. He’s only getting better and he’s shooting the ball better. He’s a great point guard and I think he’s very underrated going into this year,” Buddy said on behalf of Girard III.
The upcoming season is going to look very different without Syracuse fans attending the games and the campus being nearly empty for a majority of the season due to winter break. Buddy said he is looking forward to getting back into the competitive games in the Carrier Dome and putting on that Orange uniform for the third year in a row.
“Just being out there competing and wearing that Syracuse uniform. Knowing that we won’t have fans there, probably, but they are going to be watching and we’re going to want to win for them, for this community, for this school, and the coaching staff that has worked so hard for us.”
