For Plattsburgh State senior Kyle Richardson, basketball was as second nature as taking out the trash in his household.
Richardson recast that he started to pick up the game at the age of eight. It was then where he learned the “family trade.”
His mother played basketball during her high school years. She was the first person who had him pick up a basketball. The fact that his father was also an athlete helped set a sports-geared mindset for Richardson at an early age.
As Richardson progressed in his basketball career, he was inspired by NBA player Alan Houston, a former New York Knick. His mother would get tickets to games at Madison Square Garden, so Richardson could watch the greatness of his favorite player and maybe even take a couple of notes from his game as well.
Now, we fast forward to the present day where Richardson has made a name for himself on the Memorial court hardwood over the past four years. He currently leads his team in a multitude of statistics including points per game with 19.7, rebounds per game with 10.3, blocks per game with 1.3 and steals per game with 1.5.
Houston may have been known for his effortless jump shot but Richardson wasn’t only focused on that aspect of the game, and the proof lies in those stats. These numbers not only provide advantages for PSUC on the court but they also provide inspiration to the younger generation of Cards who are coming up in the program, especially for sophomore Eli Bryant, who knew Richardson was a natural leader when he first visited the PSUC campus.
“I could tell that he was going to be a leader for the team by the way he talked,” Bryant said. “He’s taught me to stay focused. That’s his main thing. A lot of people worry about the wrong things, but he’s always focused on the next play.”
Bryant appreciates the leadership Richardson has provided since he arrived here at PSUC, even though he admits that Richardson can be tough on the team at times as a whole, but Bryant said it is good for the Cards.
Although Richardson is known to always be focused on the court, the senior is still seen as a clown sometimes when it isn’t time to play ball. According to his high school adversary and current teammate, senior guard Edward Correa, the two have always been able to joke around with each other since they first met.
Correa also noted that Richardson is quite the ladies’ man but was quick to let us all know where he gets it from.
“I taught him all of that,” Correa said. “Without me he’s got nothing.”
Looking forward, Richardson is going to take on an assistant coaching position for the team as he has one more academic year to get through. He is excited to bring his four years of experience to the team and thinks he will be able to work with the team due to the fact that he was their teammate first.
“I hope for the new guys to keep this winning tradition going,” Richardson said. “They came into a winning program, and they learned a lot this year. Hopefully, they can keep that going.”
Email Kevin Morley at kevin.morley@cardinalpointsonline.com
