The Golden State Warriors' storylines are mostly set as they prepare to enter their preseason slate on Oct. 4.
We already got a glimpse at the early starting lineup, with Stephen Curry and Brandin Podziemski lining up with Yaxel Lendeborg, Draymond Green, and Al Horford. There's lots of intrigue there, but it's something we can break down in another piece.
Golden State's viability this season depends on far more than just their starting five. They need to see progress and viable play across the entirety of the rotation, and that includes former second-round pick Will Richard, who's coming off a promising rookie season and looking to cement himself as a 3-and-D contributor of the future for the Warriors' rotation.
He showed some major flashes of agility on the defensive end of the court and strength on the offensive end last season, which was a major pair of developments for a player that came to the team with the 56th overall pick in the Draft. But if he's going to turn into a consistently viable NBA player on this year's roster, he's going to need to take (and hit) his shots with more confidence.
We saw glimpses of that in Summer League, but the preseason is where we'll truly be able to start to chart Richard's trajectory entering his sophomore season.
Will Richard has a chance to be a highly important contributor for this Warriors rotation in 2026-27
Of course, Lendeborg and, to a lesser extent, Gui Santos are the two major young contributors to keep an eye on this season. But every competitive rotation needs pieces that are willing to operate on the margins—and Richard certainly has the potential to become one of those in the long-term for Golden State.
He averaged 6.4 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 1.3 assists last season while knocking down 33.5% of his attempts from beyond the arc. Those certainly aren't mind-blowing offensive stats, but they were enough to help him stick in Golden State's depleted rotation over the course of the regular season. His staunch defensive abilities even helped him earn a bevy of starts early in the campaign.
But this year's rotation, at least theoretically, should present some more competition for Richard in terms of rotational minutes. Lendeborg or Santos will take on starting minutes at the small forward spot, and one of Melton or Podziemski will be forced to come off the bench as the team's backup shooting guard. Brandon Williams, Georges Niang, and perhaps even LJ Cryer will be in the mix for minutes as well.
This doesn't mean that Richard will be sidelined, especially because we know how much Steve Kerr loves his intensity on the court. But if Richard is going to continue to carve out a major role on this Warriors team, we're going to need to see more out of him offensively.
He showed signs of his ability to accomplish that over the summer, averaging 10.3 points and shooting 48.3% from 3-point range between the California Classic and his stint in Las Vegas. With a new offensive scheme being implemented—one focused more on 5-out possessions and perimeter spacing—Richard will get plenty of opportunity to put shots up from beyond the arc.
Although Richard averaged 3.1 3-point attempts per game last season, there were times where he was definitely hesitant to take his shots when they came his way. If he's able to start to knock down those opportunities during Golden State's six-game preseason slate, he'll be able to carry some confidence into the new campaign that could help erase some of those deficits in his game.
We're likely not looking at a major offensive contributor here. But given his defensive impact, even a slight leap in offensive production from Richard could quickly make him a more viable rotational contributor for this Warriors team.
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