Former Weber State Men’s Basketball player Ryan Richardson has officially taken his first step into the professional levels. Richardson will be taking his talents to Europe, as the Dutch Windmills have officially announced the signing of the former Wildcat star.
As a 4-year standout at Weber State, Richardson finished his career playing in 117 career games which he started in 84. He ranks 29th in Weber State history scoring with 1,024 points, fifth in career 3-pointers made with 235 and ninth in career three-point percentage.
Richardson was the second leading scorer on the team during his senior season last year, averaging 13.5 points per game. He scored in double figures 26 times, including an impressive 20 game stretch in double figures.
He scored a career high 27 points twice during the season, including an overtime win over Portland State where he splashed six three-pointers.
“Ryan is the last piece of the puzzle that we were looking for,” head coach of the Windmills, Greet Hammink said. “The effectiveness with which Ryan has chosen and made his shots last year is of a high class.”
Richardson can absolutely shoot the ball with the best of them. During his senior season with the Wildcats, he attempted nearly seven threes a game, and connected on 43 percent of them. He was the only player in the entire Big Sky to attempt over 200 threes, attempting 213. The next closest was at 161.
“I am convinced that Ryan can translate that into professional basketball in the Netherlands,” Hamming said. “But to put him down only as a ‘shooter’ does him too short. We see that he has his affairs in order on the defensive side of the ball.”
He finished the season with 91 made three-pointers, which was third in the conference, and the fifth most all-time for the Wildcats.
Defensively, Richardson is no slouch as well. He led the team with 33 total steals, averaging 1.1 per game throughout last season. Both numbers were Top-15 in the conference.
“His high level shooting ability fits perfectly with the European game, and that should allow him to adjust quickly to his new team,” assistant head coach Eric Duff said. “Ryan is a high character young man that will represent his new team and community in a first-class manner.”
The Dutch Windmill basketball team just began during the 2017 season. Heading into the 2018-19 season, they will be joining the Dutch Basketball League. They have not played any games since the team was created, so Richardson will be a part of their inaugural season.
