How watching Warriors convinced Will Richard to change sports and transform his body

San Francisco Chronicle​

18-07-2025

LAS VEGAS — His workout over with the Golden State Warriors, Will Richard walked into an office inside Chase Center with general manager Mike Dunleavy and other team staffers to watch a replay of the first half of the NCAA championship game.
Conversations covered Richard's four 3-pointers, a mid-range jumper, four rebounds and a steal. They didn't cover his favorite contribution to Florida's 66-63 victory over Houston in the Alamodome on April 7.
With the Gators clinging to a one-point lead with 20-plus seconds to play, the senior secured his last collegiate steal — swiping the basketball off the Houston ballhandler from the strongside corner via perfect help.
'He was always there to pick us up when need be, and he was always there to play a great supporting role in every way, shape and form,' Gators associate head coach Carlin Hartman said.
Stop. Score. Championship.
'That championship — as a whole — doesn't happen without Will Richard.'
The timely shot-making, connective cutting, dogged defense and steely demeanor that steadied the Gators would woo the Warriors, who acquired Richard through last month's NBA draft. The smiley 6-foot-4 swingman with tapered locs and a tattooed sleeve — forming with Christian allegory one half of his 6-foot-10 wingspan — has been displaying it all for their summer league squad in the California Classic and at UNLV.
Belying his statistical output this summer — 12.4 points on 44.9% shooting, 21.7% 3-point shooting, 4.2 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals — is the determination developed in his hometown of Ooltewah, Tenn., advanced in Atlanta, burnished at Belmont and fortified at Florida the past three years.
As a longtime fan of the Warriors from afar, Richard willed his way to Golden State.
The Warriors hosted Richard's penultimate predraft workout among the 17 in which he participated. Training began a week after the national championship. Graduation from Florida followed a few weeks later for Richard, his degree in management of sport secured.
While in Gainesville, Fla., Richard also was schooled in the nuance of Florida's free-flowing offense and was a willing defender, making him ideal fit for Golden State as the 56th pick. The franchise has turned draft picks in the 50s (Gui Santos, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Quinten Post) the past three years into contributors, and Richard is thrilled so far with his fit, immersing himself in the Warriors way.
'I like that we play fast,' Richard said last week after Golden State's first practice in Las Vegas. 'They want you to play free, but on the other end you've got to guard with ball pressure and stuff like that. Just playing hard. Playing fast and playing physical.'
The youngest of three children (along with Sara and AJ) born to Helen and Al, Richard was raised in Ooltewah, a rural town 20 miles east of Chattanooga populated by 406. His father played defensive line at Clemson and worked at a nuclear power plant, doubling as an ordained minister. His mother tended their tight-knit home and taught her children at Sunday school.
Faith in Christ forms Richard's foundation and the basis of his tattooed sleeve — along with undying faith in himself, like his father, a football player. As 'a little chubby kid,' Richard manned the trenches, working the offensive and defensive lines until a burgeoning love for basketball — and the Warriors — would end his foray on the football field.
It would also start a commitment to fitness, coinciding with a move to suburban Atlanta, where his father franchised a Chick-fil-A restaurant ahead of Richard's ninth-grade year. The 230-pound freshman forward — with advice from his father, who played alongside several NFL players at Clemson — chiseled his body through force of focus, a pescatarian diet, running, running, running and running.
'Summers were miserable, but it paid off,' Richard said.
Without prompting, Richard would rise to sprint up the hills by his Atlanta home, often in a weighted vest and under the brooding Southern heat. By his junior season at Woodward Academy — to which he transferred after two years at Fayette County High School, seeking superior college preparation — he redefined his athletic profile, trimming to 195 pounds.
Richard 'completely … willed himself into the athlete he is today,' his father said.
College interest piqued toward Richard upon his junior season at Woodward, Georgia's state champion for which he was second in scoring and rebounding to Utah Jazz big man Walker Kessler. Daily workouts at 6 a.m. preceded the start of the scholastic schedule, affording Richard the coaching and practice to reconstruct his jumper unabated.
Absent Kessler, Richard would be featured as a senior in 2020-21, but COVID-19 compromised summertime recruiting during the club basketball season. High-major programs didn't recruit Richard, but Belmont was steadfast in its pursuit. Bruins head coach Casey Alexander watched streams of Richard's games and regularly recruited him via videoconference.
'He just kept working, kept working, kept working,' Woodward coach Anthony Thomas said. 'He was so grateful to get the attention he was getting, he had no problem going to Belmont.'
Richard pledged to play for Belmont without meeting Alexander face to face, visiting its campus in Nashville with his family and meeting his head coach when he moved that summer. He found a fit on an experienced team (that included Indiana Pacers wing Ben Sheppard) through his versatility and scoring craft.
Richard also was a plus athlete in the Ohio Valley Conference.
Richard averaged 12.1 points (46.8% shooting, 32.6% 3-point shooting), 6 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 steals as a freshman, guarding power forwards and playing the wing in Belmont's four-out offense. Alexander said, 'Because of what we had around him, we just needed him to be a really good, solid piece for us on both ends, and he was more than that.'
And a soon-to-be starter in the SEC.
The successes of Richard's freshman season spawned a trek through the transfer portal, in which dozens of programs solicited his skills. Richard said his recruitment as a transfer was 'completely different' than it was in high school. Florida head coach Todd Golden called Richard every day he was in the portal, drawing a visit from Richard to Gainesville and soon his first-ever signee with the Gators.
Golden 'said I could be a huge part of bringing the team back to the national championship, and seeing that come to fruition was special,' Richard said.
First at Florida his sophomore season, Richard found a fit as a complementary wing who would catch and shoot from beyond the arc, drive against closeouts and guard the perimeter. As the Gators evolved, so did Richard — establishing his voice as Florida's leader while sharpening and deepening his set of skills.
'Our coach on the floor,' said Hartman, Richard's closest confidant on the coaching staff.
As an upperclassman, Richard 'was the guy that was breaking down' Gators huddles and keying defensive communication. He relished his role, noting leadership helped him 'take the pressure off, thinking about myself all the time. I'm thinking about how I can make my teammates better. … Once I started honing into that leader role, I feel like my game elevated.'
Richard started 105 of the 108 games he played at Florida, averaging 11.8 points (46.2% shooting, 36.3% 3-point shooting), 4.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.2 steals. As a senior en route to the national title — a journey that included Sweet 16 and Elite Eight wins at Chase Center — he tallied 13.3 points (48.7% shooting, 35.9% 3-point shooting), 4.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.7 steals.
Pro prep continued after the season in Los Angeles and pre-draft workouts followed, none more significant than that for Golden State.
' Stephen Curry was his hero,' the elder Richard said. The younger Richard met Curry during the California Classic, calling their meeting a 'top-three moment' in his life.
When Richard would shoot in Ooltewah, then still 'a big chunky kid' per his dad, he would stretch his range past 30 feet, inspired by Curry and teammate Klay Thompson. He fancied the Warriors 'for the way they play. … They play a fun brand of basketball. They play together. They have fun with it. They shoot a lot of threes, cuts, all that. … Just play the right way.'
They drafted Richard to play that way with them.
Said Richard: 'This is where I wanted to be.'