The Valparaiso University men's basketball program has announced the addition of George Richardson (Chicago, Ill. / Evanston [Link Academy]), a 6-foot-7 forward who joins the program for the 2026-2027 season.
 
Richardson helped DePaul Prep to a state championship as a junior in high school before transferring to Evanston, where he helped his team to a third-place finish at state. He was an All-American at Link Academy during his prep school season in 2025-26.
 
"I really like all of the Valpo coaches," Richardson said. "Coach Powell being a believer was a big factor in my decision. My coach at Link Academy was a huge believer, and that was the first time I played for someone with such strong faith. Coach Powell resembles a lot of the good things that my last coach did. I've dreamed about this opportunity and I've always been a little under-looked. Betting on myself and playing that fifth year helped develop my game. That paid off."
 
Richardson continues a well-established pipeline between Link and Valpo, and Link has produced some of Valpo's brightest stars during the Roger Powell Jr. head coaching era.
 
"George is another Link product who is a great kid," Powell said. "He has good size and can really shoot. I'm excited about his future and the continuance of the Link Academy tradition here at Valpo."
 
Richardson credits his parents, his older brother and Link Academy coach Adam Donyes for helping him get to this point. Richardson was recruited to Link to be on the "regional" team before working his way up to starting on the "national" team.
 
"I'm really versatile and hard working," Richardson said. "I can fit on any kind of roster and any kind of team. If you need me to score the ball, I can score the ball. I can play good defense. I'm excited to get to campus and get to work."
 
Off the court, Richardson is getting into golf and enjoys watching sports. He is an Ohio State football fan. He intends to pursue a business degree.
 
Richardson joins a Valpo program that will meld a strong returning core with an exciting incoming class.
 
"The team is really glued together and I could feel that all of the returning players are bought into the program," Richardson said. "They are really good players who could have played at a higher level. In today's college basketball world, a lot of people are just leaving, so having a team that likes each other is huge. That is how you win. Coach Powell's trajectory has been going up, and I feel like that will keep going."