Arkansas has a point guard problem, one that can be partially solved if freshman Billy Richmond practices patience and slows his game down occasionally.
Richmond's slight role increase at the lead-man position isn't necessarily ideal, but Boogie Fland's right thumb injury has left coach John Calipari no other choice.
For the most part, Richmond's fast-playing pace is a positive on the defensive side — his 13.5 defensive rebounding percentage, according to KenPom, ranks best for Arkansas guards not named Karter Knox (14.0), his 2.4 block percentage is better than any guard on the team and his 2.4 steal percentage falls just behind Adou Thero (3.8), Trevon Brazile (2.5) and Fland (2.5) — but that doesn't always translate on the other end of the court.
That's why, as much as possible, Calipari opts to play the experienced DJ Wagner at point guard. Wagner averages 34.4 minutes per game and leads the Razorbacks in percentage of minutes played (85.8), with the next closest healthy Hog being Thiero at 67.6%.
Playing that frequently isn't sustainable for the entire season, which is precisely why Calipari needs Richmond to stop playing 100 miles per hour at all times.
"I've been talking with Billy, I want Billy to play more, he's got to slow down," Calipari said during his coach show Monday. "You know what I'm saying? Defensively and rebounding (are great) — but offensively, you got to slow down my man. Slow your mind, be more patient, because I'm telling you, Billy impacts the game. He impacts the game. And so, he could be in there as our point guard, he really can."
Richmond's freakish athleticism and aggressiveness are best served when he finds himself one-on-one with a defender or when a hole opens up in an opponent's defense, but too often he finds himself with his head down putting up a tough shot in traffic, which results in a miss, block or turnover.
Developing an outside shot will go a long way in opening up Richmond's game, but that may be a year away from fully taking effect. This season, Richmond has shot (and missed) his three three-point attempts, but is still hitting field goals at a 56.7% clip.
In 14.5 minutes per game, the Tennessee native is averaging 4.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 0.8 turnovers.
A perfect example of Richmond's tenacity going wrong came in Arkansas' latest loss to Oklahoma. With the Hogs up 50-47 and less than 10 minutes to go, Richmond caught a pass on the right wing, drove forward and attempted to kick the ball to big man Zvonimir Ivisic, who was just a few feet away from him on the baseline. The pass wasn't on point, and it tipped off of Ivisic's hand out of bounds as a result.
Calipari then subbed Richmond out for the final stretch, and the 6-foot-5 guard finished 0-of-3 from the field with a turnover against the Sooners.
"Now the play with he and (Big) Z, you just played too fast," Calipari said Saturday. "Just slow down. And the same in transition, where you’re going so fast the officials aren’t going to give you those calls. Just slow down. But I’m telling you the way (Richmond) defends and the things...he’s got to be on the floor more. He just does."
Not all is bad for Richmond though. His 12-point outing on 6-of-9 shooting against a good Illinois team on Nov. 28 is evidence that Richmond can find a rhythm that matches both his tempo and the one Calipari needs, but repeating that in SEC play is a different beast.
Richmond's next opportunity will come on the road against the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday. That game will tip off at 8 p.m. CT and it will air on ESPN.
