Calipari isn’t complaining, but he’d take a second Billy Richmond

You can tell a lot about a coach by how he talks about the players he doesn’t have.

John Calipari isn’t complaining about his roster. He’s too experienced for that.

But listen closely to how he describes Billy Richmond’s value this season, and you’ll hear a coach who’d gladly take a second or third version of him if one existed.

He doesn’t have that.

What he has is nine freshmen, a senior center in Cooper Bowser who’s older but newer to the program, and Richmond, the lone returning starter who actually knows how Calipari wants things run at Arkansas.

That’s the hand he’s been dealt, and he’s playing it by leaning on Richmond harder than you’d lean on a typical returning player.

During Monday’s open practice, Calipari didn’t dress it up.

“It’s nice to have Billy back because he practically is coaching on the floor,” Calipari said. “I’ll be honest, he’s half coaching the team right now, and I’m fine with it.

“He’s talking to them, telling them where they should go, shooting the ball way better. But when you talk about a player like that being, I hate to say this, the one player you have returning — he’s a pretty good player to have returning.”

Read that again and notice the phrasing.

“The one player you have returning.” Not “my best player” or “my leader.” Just the one guy who’s actually been through it.

That’s not a knock on Richmond, who put up 11.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.1 steals a game last year while shooting 56.3% from the field and 78.4% from the line across 37 outings and 19 starts.

It’s just an honest read of where this roster stands.

Making one guy do the work of a few

Richmond nearly wasn’t walking through that gym door at all.

He tested the NBA Draft waters this spring before deciding to return, and the feedback he got from scouts is now shaping how Calipari coaches him.

“It was more about the skills, decision-making,” Calipari said. “They want to see that you could see the court, and he’s good at all this stuff. The only thing I’m saying to him — live in the gym now.

“What you went through shows you you’re right there. Now you want to put yourself in those top 10 picks, live in the gym.”

That’s a coach asking one player to develop his own game and mentor nine freshmen at the same time. It’s a lot to ask, but it’s what Calipari has to work with this year.

We’ll see the first signs of how it’s coming together Friday, when Arkansas opens against the Bahamas National Team at 6 p.m. on FloSports, the first of four exhibition games at the Baha Mar Hoops Summer League.

Key takeaways

• Calipari’s comments suggest he’d welcome more returning experience but is working with what he has
• Richmond is being asked to develop individually while also guiding a roster of nine freshmen
• Arkansas opens its exhibition schedule Friday against the Bahamas National Team