Billy Richmond is returning to Arkansas after briefly signaling he would stay in the NBA Draft, according to a report Wednesday from CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein. The decision came just 22 minutes after Rothstein first reported that Richmond was going to remain in the draft.
Richmond had to make the call by Wednesday’s deadline to withdraw and keep his college eligibility. The sophomore wing chose the Razorbacks, ending a spring draft process that included the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago from May 12-14 and a late push from a player who had worked his way into upper second-round projections.
The return matters because Richmond was Arkansas’ most high-profile player weighing his future after the Razorbacks’ run ended with a loss to Arizona in the Sweet 16. He is also one of the team’s most valuable returnees on the floor. Richmond made the SEC All-Defense Team this season and averaged 11.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 25% from 3-point range. He shot 12% from deep in his rookie campaign, a number that shows how much his offensive game has still been developing.
At the combine, Richmond measured 6 feet, 5.75 inches barefoot with a 6-foot-8 wingspan and weighed 195.4 pounds. He also posted an 8-foot-5 standing reach. In workouts, he made 13 of 25 spot-up 3-point attempts and backed that up in scrimmages, scoring 8 points in Scrimmage 1 and 11 points in Scrimmage 2. Those numbers helped fuel interest as the draft approached, even if his overall production in Chicago was uneven from game to game.
Richmond’s first scrimmage line included 8 points, 3-of-9 shooting, 1-of-3 from 3-point range, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls in 20 minutes and 42 seconds. In the second, he had 11 points on 4-of-11 shooting, missed all three 3-point attempts, and added 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 foul in 19 minutes and 15 seconds. That mix of flashes and rough edges made him exactly the kind of player who could draw second-round attention while still making sense as a returnee to college basketball.
He now rejoins an Arkansas roster that has already secured wing Isaiah Sealy and forward Paulo Semedo for next season. The Razorbacks have also landed portal commitments from Furman center Cooper Bowser and Georgia guard Jeremiah Wilkinson, and they already have four freshmen committed. Coach John Calipari had signaled that decisions like Richmond’s could swing both ways, saying he wanted to see whether Richmond and Meleek Thomas could hear their names called in the first round and noting they might come back if they were not in that range.
For Arkansas, the timing is decisive. Richmond’s return gives the Razorbacks another proven two-way piece as the roster comes together for next season, and it removes the uncertainty around one of the program’s most important draft decisions only hours before the withdrawal window closed.
