John Calipari’s third Arkansas squad will be a youthful one, but not one devoid of experience, thanks to the news on Wednesday that guard Billy Richmond III will return for his junior season.
Richmond, a native of Memphis, Tenn., who has quickly become a fan favorite in Fayetteville, will return to a team led by a group of explosive, highly touted freshmen, including Jordan Smith Jr., Abdou Toure, Miikka Muurinen and JJ Andrews.
All four of the above are expected to be a walking SportsCenter top 10 once Arkansas’ 2026-27 season begins this fall, but Richmond should be a steadying force for what will be a young, inexperienced squad with plenty of outside noise surrounding it.
What Billy Richmond can bring
That’s not to say that Richmond will be a mellow, quiet DJ Wagner-esque leader. Richmond’s play-style is unapologetically loud, fast and chaotic to a point where it is occasionally out of control.
But Richmond does bring two years of Sweet 16 experience to the table and has grown up quite a bit since his freshman year in Fayetteville. He turned into a bona fide scorer over the second half of the 2025-26 campaign, averaging 19 points per game in an eight-game stretch from Jan. 31 to Feb. 28, 12.7 in the NCAA Tournament and scoring 18 in Arkansas’ SEC Championship Game win over Vanderbilt on March 15.
Richmond also improved his field goal percentage to 56.3 percent and became an even better defender during his sophomore season, being voted to the SEC All-Defensive Team.
For all of the deserved hype around Arkansas’ wealth of young talent, the most important player on Calipari’s third Razorback team may be Richmond, who is the dictionary definition of a glue guy.
