Peoria Manual star Dietrich Richardson commits to Bradley

After visiting programs in the ACC, SEC and Mountain West this fall, Peoria Manual’s Dietrich Richardson ultimately decided that staying home was the right move and fit for him.

The multi-faceted 6-7 senior committed to Bradley on Saturday night, giving Braves coach Brian Wardle a massive recruiting win. Richardson is the City/Suburban Hoops Report’s top-ranked prospect in the Class of 2025.

Bradley now has commitments from two local products — Richardson and Metamora’s Matthew Zobrist — who are the state’s No. 1 and No. 4 ranked prospects.

The recruiting process was a bit of a whirlwind for Richardson. He visited Virginia Tech, Vanderbilt and Wyoming before taking a final visit to Bradley this past week, ultimately choosing the Braves over Wyoming, which he visited last month.

“It feels good to have the process over as there is a lot of stress relief that comes with that,” Richardson admitted. “There were some confusing times in the recruiting process. But I always felt like as long as I had a place to go with a full scholarship to college, it was going to be a blessing. I don’t take that for granted.”

Richardson, though, started feeling very comfortable with the idea of staying home, to have a chance to add his name to Peoria basketball lore.

“It’s exciting to have a school right in my backyard where I can play,” Richardson said. “To be able to have all my friends and family come watch me play whenever they want was big for me.”

Richardson grew up going to Bradley games. He’s familiar with the program and is well aware of the tradition and the success. But he says that while that was important, the sell from the Bradley staff went beyond being local and the program’s basketball success.

“It wasn’t all about basketball with Bradley,” Richardson said of the recruiting pitch. “They focused on the student-athlete part — the academics and classes, making sure I would be taken care of when I got there. Then we got into the development part, how I would be used and the future of the program.”

Bradley lands a player with elite perimeter size and length. He can play a number of positions but is best suited as a point guard who sets up teammates and sees the floor extremely well. He’s fluid as a grab-and-go player in transition and has an advanced pull-up, mid-range jumper.

Richardson is excited for the near future. But he also knows he has a chance to cement his legacy in Peoria. Peoria players who have stayed home have become legends after their days at Bradley, including names like Al Smith, Daniel Ruffin and Marcellus Sommerville.

“Every time they are seen 20 or 30 years later there are stories about when they played,” Richardson said. “That relationship with the people here in Peoria is real. When I get older, I will always be remembered as the one who stayed home and went to Bradley. Being given that opportunity means everything to me.”