Michigan State guard Jase Richardson drives to the basket against Auburn guard Tahaad Pettiford during the first half of the Elite Eight round of the NCAA tournament at State Farm Arena in Atlanta on Sunday, March 30, 2025. Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

How Does MSU's Richardson Fit With Magic?

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Tom Cavanaugh | Last updated Jun 26, 2025 11:30 AM ET

There aren't many teams better to have selected former Michigan Star star freshman Jase Richardson than the Orlando Magic, who selected Richardson with the No. 25 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. Following in his father Jason's footsteps as first-round pick and a member of the Magic.

The elder Richardson played 109 games with Orlando. 13 years later, the next Richardson blue and white pinstripe jersey will be donned in central Florida.

The Magic are one of the rising teams in the Eastern Conference, consistently improving year-by-year. They finished seventh in the East, making their way into a first-round playoff series with the Boston Celtics. Despite losing the series, 4-1, they competed at a high level and will be better for it.

How does Richardson fit onto a young team that is looking to break into the upper echelon of the league?

Richardson joins a team that recently traded away two of their top guards in Cole Anthony and Kentavius Caldwell-Pope in exchange for shooting guard Desmond Bane. In the two-for-one deal, that opens room for Richardson to get on the floor and add his value.

There is a chance that Richardson will play alongside a fellow Spartan in shooting guard Gary Harris who just concluded his 11th NBA season. But Orlando did decline Harris' player option. Should he re-sign, he could be a great mentor for the young rookie trying to get his feet underneath himself.

ESPN's depth chart for the Magic has Richardson slated as the backup shooting guard behind Bane as well as the third-string point guard behind starer Jalen Suggs and third-year guard Anthony Black. The top three guards for this team will be the Bane, Richardson, and Suggs.

It will be interesting to see what the Magic do in the rest of the draft as they currently hold two second-round picks (No. 46, No. 57). If they decide to take another guard, it will add more competition for Richardson to get on the court, but adding another piece at small forward is more beneficial.

For a team that is continuing to build from within for the most part, Richardson will likely be given a very fair shake with Orlando. The Magic will give him his opportunity to shine and hopefully can lead this team to another playoff appearance next year, taking over the league as an elite dual-threat guard.

Ensure that you follow the official Spartan Nation page on Facebook, Spartan Nation, WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE, and be a part of our lively community group, Go Green Go White, as well WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.