FAYETTEVILLE — It was evident during Primetime at the Palace on Oct. 2 that Billy Richmond III is the most beloved player on the Arkansas men's basketball team.
The junior from Memphis, Tenn., received hearty cheers from the crowd inside Bud Walton Arena has he has consistently since making a name for himself as a hard-nosed, aggressive player during his freshman season.
The enduring visual of Richmond from that 2024-25 campaign was him being carried off the court by his teammates after denying a would-be game-winning shot from Mississippi State's Riley Kugel in the regular season finale, a victory that ended up being huge for Arkansas' prospects of making the NCAA Tournament.
Richmond only averaged 17.5 minutes a game during his rookie campaign in Fayetteville, but that number jumped to 27.5 last year. This season, as a junior on a team chock-full of talented but green freshman, the 20-year-old is taking on a leadership role and will likely find himself in the starting lineup throughout the year.
Richmond was named Preseason Third Team All-SEC on Oct. 12.
"He's gotten better again," head coach John Calipari said of Richmond on Sept. 30. "He leads. He's talking. He's walking guys through. He's grabbing guys on the side. I think again, people are going to watch and say, 'Man, they're going to love him because he is who he is.' He's that unicorn. If everybody could play that hard, they would. But there's only a few that do the things that he does."
Richmond's unrelenting aggression and tenacious attitude, especially on the defensive side of the ball, have made him a lovable, scrappy superstar for the Hogs. But offensively, he became a much more reliable scorer for the Razorbacks last season and is expected to take another leap this season.
Richmond went from shooting 52.3 percent from the field in his freshman season to 56.3 percent a year ago. His points per game nearly doubled from 5.7 to 11.2, and he shot 25.9 percent from three and 78.4 percent from the foul line in his sophomore season compared to marks of 12.5 and 73.2 percent, respectively, in his freshman year.
"[He's] now shooting the ball better," Calipari said. "He plays fast, but he's not in a hurry now. He's got a better feel... he may be our best player."
Richmond said Tuesday he was challenged by his coaches to shoot the ball more and be a more vocal leader.
What gives Richmond the potential, as Calipari said, to be the best player for the Razorbacks this season is his versatility.
Should Arkansas need a scoring boost, Richmond can literally and figuratively score in a hurry, both on fast breaks and by making mid-range jumpers and tough shots in the paint. If they need a big stop, Richmond, who averaged 0.8 blocks and 1.1 steals per game last season, will be their go-to guy.
So far, Richmond has earned his nickname of "Billy Goat."
He may not be the greatest player in Arkansas history, but he's loved like one by his coaches, teammates and fans because he's yet to meet a task on the basketball court that he's proven unable to accomplish or at least give his all trying to accomplish.
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