Related: Jalen Suggs · Anthony Black · Jevon Carter · Noah Penda
Information cutoff: 2026-07-18. Summer League is treated as developmental evidence, not an NBA-stat forecast.
Projection card
| GP | MPG | FG | FT | 3PM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | 9.0 | .470 (1.3/2.8) | .740 (0.4/0.6) | 0.5 | 3.5 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.4 |
Healthy active-game allocation: 9 minutes. Confidence: low-medium; development and guard health can move the role sharply.
2025-26 baseline
Richardson played 54 games at 10.9 minutes, averaging 4.4 points, 1.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.4 steals, almost no blocks, 0.5 threes, and 0.5 turnovers. He shot .473 from the field and .717 from the line.
The efficient finishing was encouraging, but the sample did not yet establish a category-producing NBA role. Orlando's healthy guard queue begins with Suggs, Bane, and Black.
Summer League signal
Richardson recorded 15 points, four rebounds, and four assists on July 9; 15 points, five rebounds, and six assists on July 11; and 25 points on July 15. Orlando's July 16 feature emphasized what he was showing as a creator. The assist growth is the most fantasy-relevant signal because a pure scoring reserve would remain blocked.
Summer League opponents, pace, and roles are materially different from the NBA. The evidence increases confidence in long-term combo-guard utility but does not justify projecting 20 rotation minutes.
Role and pathway
Richardson is the fourth healthy guard and can enter behind either backcourt spot. The base gives him nine minutes across 60 appearances, with larger opportunities on Suggs maintenance nights or if Black moves into the starting lineup. Jevon Carter is the safer emergency organizer, but Richardson has the development incentive.
Category shape
- Potential strengths: efficient interior guard scoring, improving playmaking, low turnovers in a modest role.
- Needs proof: FT percentage, three-point volume, steals.
- Weak: rebounds and blocks.
Without defensive events or high assist volume, he must become an efficient scoring guard to matter in 9-cat.
Format and market map
| Format | Base posture |
|---|---|
| 9-cat redraft | Not draftable in standard leagues |
| H2H points | Waiver watch if guard injuries open 20-plus minutes |
| Dynasty | Deep stash, roughly top 250-350 |
| G League/salary-cap formats | More compelling because development reps carry value |
Hashtag's July analyst dynasty board ranked Richardson 343rd. That is a fair cold-market baseline; the July playmaking can justify moving him above similarly blocked low-assist guards, but not into a premium stash tier.
Floor, base, and ceiling
| Scenario | Fantasy outcome |
|---|---|
| Floor | Irregular appearances and G League assignments; no redraft value |
| Base | Nine NBA minutes, developmental flashes, dynasty watch list |
| Ceiling | 20-plus minutes after injuries, 9/2/3 with useful FG; deep-league stream |
Evidence trail
- Magic-Hornets Summer League notes, 2026-07-09.
- NBA Magic-Heat Summer League recap, 2026-07-11.
- NBA Magic-76ers Summer League recap, 2026-07-15.
- Magic feature on Richardson, 2026-07-16.
- NBA Summer League highlights, 2026-07-15 — visual context only.
- Hashtag Basketball dynasty rankings, updated 2026-07-02.
Career record
Pre-NBA: One season at Michigan State (2024-25), born October 16, 2005 and the youngest player in his draft class. Came off the bench for the first half of the year and started 15 of 36 games, finishing at 12.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 25.3 minutes on .493/.412/.836 — a genuinely elite efficiency line for a freshman guard, with the shooting splits doing most of the draft work. Son of Jason Richardson, who won a national title at the same school. Draft: 2025, first round, 25th overall, Orlando.
| Season | Age | Team | GP | MPG | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | 3PM | FG% | 3P% | FT% | TO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 20 | ORL | 54 | 10.9 | 4.4 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.5 | .473 | .354 | .717 | 0.5 |
| Career | 54 | 10.9 | 4.4 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.5 | .473 | .354 | .717 | 0.5 |
Durability: 54 of 82 as a rookie. The missed games were rotation and assignment decisions on a deep playoff roster rather than a health story; no significant injury was reported.
Trajectory: One NBA season, and the efficiency held at a level rookies rarely sustain — .473 from the floor and .354 from three in 10.9 minutes, with a turnover rate low enough to be trusted. What is missing is volume in anything: 1.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists and essentially no blocks means there is no category he currently supplies. He enters 2026-27 as the fourth guard behind Suggs, Bane and Black, and the July Summer League passing — three straight games with real assist totals — is the only evidence that the ceiling is a combo guard rather than a scoring specialist. He is a dynasty stash on age and pedigree, not a redraft asset. The specific condition for relevance is an injury to Suggs or Bane that pushes him past 20 minutes for a multi-week stretch; short of that, nine minutes a night produces nothing rosterable.
Career sources: ESPN career stats · Wikipedia
Open questions
- Did Richardson's Summer League passing reflect a real role expansion?
- Can he raise his free-throw percentage and three-point volume?
- Does Orlando prioritize his development over Carter's stability?
- How many guard injuries would be required for a consistent 20-minute role?