Jase Richardson has enjoyed a terrific start to the college basketball season. The 19-year-old freshman is averaging 10.3 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.0 stock (steals plus blocks) per game in 21 minutes a night, all with just a 16% usage rate, totaling a massive 11.2 box plus-minus. That number is surely due to some regression with a larger sample size, but it speaks to how impressive he's been early on and how he's earned the trust of a coach who normally doesn't like to play freshman-heavy minutes.
The area in which he's been really intriguing long-term is his second-side creation, that is, creating whilst attacking closeouts and coming off screens and handoffs.
Richardson takes pristine driving angles to the rim when attacking off the catch, isn't shy of physicality and is crafty around the basket to make up for his small 6-foot-3 stature. He's also comfortable pulling up from midrange when a defender steps up and takes away his driving lane. The result is an efficient 81% at the rim and 54% from the midrange through nine games.
He's also a great passer and decision-maker with the ball in his hands, currently owns a 4.5 assist-to-turnover ratio. This flawless decision-making shows up on drives where he's sprayed it out to shooters and has manipulated backline defenders to create dump-off passes. His high feel for the game is present in this area, and it's made him one of the best advantage maintainers in the country.
Richardon's intersection of driving and passing lends itself well to handoff usage, where he can also attack a tilted defense and make a play with the ball. The same is true for off-screen situations, where his elite shooting efficiency (50% on 18 threes) also comes into play and creates driving lanes if defenders go over the screen.
The aggregate of his spot-up, handoffs, and off-screen value sums up to a prospect with tons of potential as a second-side creator, which is something that'll undoubtedly be interesting to NBA teams. Richardson's usage has been trending upward over the past couple of games, seeing a season-high usage percentage in his last game against Nebraska. Hopefully that trend continues, as a player as efficient as Richardson on drives and pullups may have untapped potential scaling up as a secondary ballhandler.