FAYETTEVILLE — Billy Richmond's stay-or-go decision came down to the 11th hour.

There was a major scare when CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein initially reported that Richmond would enter the 2026 NBA Draft but, in the end, the fan-favorite chose to extend his college career and return to Arkansas basketball for his junior season.

If everything goes to plan, this will be Richmond's final campaign with the Razorbacks. The hope is to build his draft stock into a guaranteed first-round pick.

Richmond now knows what the draft process is like. He attended this summer's combine and held multiple private workouts for NBA teams. He said there was a simple message from scouts on what he needs to accomplish this season with the Hogs.

"Being more consistent. Staying consistent through the games and not taking plays off," Richmond said. "I tend to take some plays off, even though I play hard, but just not taking plays off and going 100%. This year is a separation year."

It's never an easy task beating out the annual new crop of freshmen and eligible Europeans.

Last year, Karter Knox failed to accomplish the same goal that Richmond has this winter, and Knox ended up transferring to Louisville. He became one of the rare players to transfer out of a John Calipari program. Two others who played at Arkansas — Boogie Fland and Zvonimir Ivisic — are also still trying to become NBA Draft picks.

Aside from effort and energy, it's no secret that becoming a better shooter is a top priority. In his college career, Richmond is a 23% shooter from 3-point range. He made incremental progress last season and had a hot streak in the middle of SEC play, but defenses still don't respect the lefty from behind the arc.

It's the missing piece in a tantalizing skillset. Richmond is one of the best fastbreak players in the country, who can wow crowds with dunks and blocks in the open court. He's 6-foot-7 and is capable of defending point guards 1-on-1. He's also spent brief stretches of his career serving as the Arkansas floor general on offense.

Last year, Richmond averaged 11.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Despite shooting 25.9% on 3s, he was a 56.3% shooter overall with incredible efficiency inside the paint.

This offseason, there's been plenty of hard work put into his jumper.

"The shots that I know I'm going to take in the games are the ones that I'm working on. Getting around 500 shots up a day," Richmond said.

There's another area of improvement that won't show up in any box score this season. For the first time since Richmond joined the Razorbacks, he is one of the older players on the roster. The Hogs have eight freshmen on the roster in Calipari's third season with the program.

"Just being a so-called leader and experienced player, it means a lot," Richmond said. "Just trying to get better at that so whenever the young guys have a question of what we need to do, I have an answer."