Senior center Atticus Richmond is finally showing Stevenson, as well as opponents, the player he can be.
The 6-foot-8 Richmond just needed time to adjust after transferring from the Berkshire School in western Massachusetts.
“I’m not going to lie,” he said. “I wasn’t playing to my full potential last year. I was new to Stevenson, too, and wasn’t very comfortable yet. Some guys on that team were set with their roles, and I had to adapt to that as the year went on.”
It’s not like Richmond was unproductive last season. He averaged double figures in scoring and was the leading rebounder as the Patriots won 23 games, including a regional final.
But Richmond’s less than enthusiastic tone as he talks about last season speaks to the high expectations he has for himself.
“Once the offseason came, I started to attack some things I didn’t do well,” he said. “It was mostly dump-offs and catch-and-shoot threes last year. I didn’t really drive to the basket. Now I’m taking the drives more than the threes. I’m just being more aggressive in general.”
As a result, Richmond is playing at a high level as Stevenson (9-7, 3-2) approaches the second half of the North Suburban Conference season. He has recorded 10 double-doubles in 16 games and is averaging 11.0 points, a team-high 9.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists.
Richmond was named to the all-tournament team at Wheeling’s Hardwood Classic, where he led the field in rebounds with 38 in four games in late December.
Richmond hasn’t slowed down. He grabbed 11 rebounds during the Patriots’ 39-36 conference win against Lake Forest on Jan. 7 and had 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists during their 67-51 conference loss to Warren on Friday.
“We all knew what potential he had, but he’s really turned it up a notch lately,” Stevenson coach Will Benson said. “He’s grasping a few more offensive rebounds, which is helping get him to the line more. He’s taken his competitiveness to a new level.”
Richmond agrees with Benson’s last point.
“I’m definitely leaving it all out there right now,” Richmond said. “I try to get literally every rebound and shut out the other team’s top player. When you play that hard, you don’t even get tired because the adrenaline is pumping.”
Another reason for Richmond’s success is the guidance he’s receiving from first-year volunteer assistant David Simon. A 2000 Stevenson graduate who played at Purdue Fort Wayne before a 19-year international career, the 6-9 Simon has taken Richmond under his wing.
“We take 15 minutes at practice and just work on post moves, and my post defense has improved a lot,” Richmond said. “He’s like my own personal coach during the game. He sees the game from a whole different perspective because of his experience. He knows all the little tricks.”
Simon retired as a player in May and decided to give back to the community where he grew up. He also has three sons, and the oldest, Jayden, is an eighth grader who plays basketball and other sports with Richmond’s younger brother Bowie.
“My approach in the beginning was focusing on the mental aspects because he has all the physical tools to be successful,” Simon said of Richmond. “I tell him all the time that he’s able to do so many more things than I was when I was in high school. He’s been rebounding like a madman. It’s good that he’s been able to see the fruits of his labor.”
Richmond, who played on Deerfield’s sophomore team as a freshman and on Berkshire’s varsity team as a sophomore, has also taken on a leadership role for the Patriots.
“I’m using my voice more, and I’ve never really done that on a team before — doing things like holding people accountable and getting out of my comfort zone to help the team,” he said.
Richmond will likely play college basketball eventually. But he’ll first spend a post-graduation year at The Newman School in Boston.
“That will give me an extra year to improve and build on what I want to improve on,” Richmond said. “We feel like it’s the best choice to make and will hopefully result in more looks.”
Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter.
