Winter 2017-18
South Florida may never really get cold, but Richardson thrived this past winter.
His best stretch came in December 2017, when he averaged 17.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.1 steals a game.
He started the month off by scoring a then career-high 27 points on 11-for-14 shooting from the field (3-of-4 from downtown) on December 1, in a win at home over the Hornets. He broke his own record just seven contests later, on December 16, when he totaled 28 points, going 10-for-16 from the field and 6-of-8 from 3 versus the Los Angeles Clippers.
Then just two days later, on December 18, he hit 26 points (shooting 10-of-19 from the field) against the Hawks.
Talk about a happy holiday season.
The start of 2018 went just as productively for the swingman though, recording 22 points (including going 5-of-7 from beyond-the-arc) and five assists on January 3, versus the Detroit Pistons.
And as for February?
Richardson scored a career-high 30 points against the Houston Rockets on February 7, shooting 11-of-20 from the field, going a whopping 7-of-9 from 3-point land.
In general, the third year impressed the entirety of Heat Nation in 2017-18.
He finished the season averaging 12.9 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.5 steals per matchup, showing improvement across the board.
He caught the attention of not just supporters of the team, but of the league period, proving that president Pat Riley still very much knows how to not just find diamonds in the rough, but polish them to perfection too.
It’s safe to say that Richardson is very much the face of the future for the Miami Heat.