Jason Richardson’s thoughts on his son, Jaxon, and his development

SPRINGFIELD ― As the son of a former NBA player, Jaxon Richardson understands the value of being a complimentary player.

“It helps the team out because we have people that can score on the team,” Richardson said on Saturday at the 2025 Hoophall Classic after Christopher Columbus (FL) defeated Notre Dame (CA), 76-53.

Playing alongside other high-profile and talented prospects such as Cameron Boozer (No. 3 in Class of 2025), Cayden Boozer (No. 17 in Class of 2025) and Caleb Gaskins (No. 9 in Class of 2026) has kept the junior forward in a supplementary role on the team.

“We need people that can do other things as well, so I’m just trying to do what I can defensively,” Richardson said. “To be able to play off the ball and still help out while playing off the ball because a lot of people can’t do it.”

13-year NBA veteran Jason Richardson was in attendance for his son’s game and noted how important it is for young players to have the humility to accept such a role and learn how to excel in between margins.

“It just does (you) good when you go to the next level,” Jason said. “When you go to college and play at a power-five school, (there is) going to be other guys just as good as you or even better. So you learn at an early age how to play along with other guys, learn how to be an alpha male amongst alpha male, which is not necessarily just ‘he score, I score’, it’s complimenting each other and I think he does a great job on that.”

Christopher Columbus head coach Andrew Moran highlighted Richardson’s growth since transferring from Bishop Gorman (NV) last summer.

“It’s a testament of the work he put in over the summer, improving his shot,” Moran said. “He’s been one of our best shooters all year, just being able to continue to grow his game, being able to handle the ball (and) make plays.

“Specifically, (going) back to City of Palms (Classic), where he has two of the biggest games, shot the ball extremely well and gave us that push to actually City of Palms, which we’ve never won before. He’s helped us so much off of his energy but now, there’s so much more to his game and I think it’s just going to continue to improve.”

Jason also noted how the pairing of his son and the sons of former 13-year NBA veteran, Carlos Boozer, is a full-circle moment for the two.

“It’s pretty funny (and) crazy, Carlos and I were the same class. (Class of) 1999, made McDonald’s All-Americans, now our sons are playing with each other,” Jason said. “It helps (Jaxon) out to understand (how to play with) a guy like (Cameron Boozer), who is the main person on a team. ‘How can I compliment it? How can I help him? How can he help my game?’ It’s just fun to see that development.”

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