NEW HAVEN - Amidst the new college landscape that Yale men's basketball coach James Jones calls "upside down and backwards," his blossoming young star Riley Fox from West Hartford is navigating the journey by finding balance before he takes each step.
His approach has allowed him to see a path to stability, a truly meaningful education, a lifetime network of resources, and yes, even to the NBA.
He admits that while it is difficult to ignore the intriguing trappings of today's NIL money, revenue sharing and the transfer portal opportunities, he's thriving in a great culture that also provides the promise of a better future.
"One of the things that stood out to me when I was being recruited by Yale was they kept talking about how the 40 years after your four years of college basketball affect your life," Fox said. "You want to set yourself up to be successful not only on the court, but later in life when the ball stops bouncing, because it will eventually.
"Although some of the money right now in basketball is pretty intriguing, going to an Ivy League school with the education, the connections, the opportunities, the alumni and all of that is so intriguing, as well."
So, too, is Yale's success in basketball. The Bulldogs have won either the regular season or Ivy League tournament each of the last seven years, and they have gone to the NCAA Tournament five times in the last 10 seasons.
He believes it is his turn to play a much bigger role in continuing that success.
Last season, he averaged 10 points per game and finished tied for second on the team in 3-pointers with 45 while playing 18 minutes per game off the bench.
"I am super excited," Fox said. "Last year we had a phenomenal team (24-7, regular season champs) with a lot of great pieces, and I thought we fit really well with each other. Going into this year now having Samson (Aletan) and Isaac (Celiscar) leave us (through the transfer portal) and having Nick (Townsend) and Casey (Simmons) graduate, we lost four of our five starters.
"That's a lot. Trying to fill their shoes and step up, there is going to be a lot more responsibility on myself and my other teammates to put points on the board and get stops, assists and rebounds."
Toward that end, he's been busy working on his game. The 6-foot-6 Fox focused on his ballhandling skills, because he expects to be much more of a playmaker this season. He knows he has that ability, because he not only set the Conard High records for points and rebounds, but he also had the second-most career assists.
During the first two weeks of practice this year, he was consistently first or second in assists.
"Trying to be the most complete player I can be includes being a better facilitator," Fox said. "I don't want to put too much pressure on Trevor (Mullin) or Jordan (Brathwaite) to do it all when I can step into that role, too. I also feel like when my teammates are going and I am finding them for open shots, it opens everything up for my offense."
He also spent time this past offseason working out with dynamic sophomore guard Courtney Wallace, who he calls "a stud that will impact the team significantly this season and in the future."
"He is about 6-3, really strong and really quick," Fox said. "Working out with him every day helped me move my feet faster, be more physical as a defender and be able to guard smaller guys who may be quicker than me by using my strength and my length."
Fox also spent a few weeks in May training and playing 3-on-3 for Team USA at the Americas Cup in the Honduras with teammates Jack Sullivan, Mullin and Brathwaite. It helped him play better at a high pace with a lot of actions and gave him a great opportunity to work on his 3-point efficiency in competition.
"Learning a different style of basketball between us four and spending two weeks together helped us bond and get closer," Fox said. "Getting through some adversity together helped not only build our character but build trust between us, which I think will show this year."
He said throughout his first two years at Yale he has also worked on his body, putting on "19 pounds of muscle" that has allowed him to improve not only his strength but also his quickness and jumping ability.
He has worked on his 3-point shot, because he wants to shoot over 40% even though he anticipates that he will be taking tougher shots because won't get as many open shots as he has in the past.
Jones calls Fox a goldfish, because he quickly forgets about the last shot he missed, allowing him to be confident each subsequent shot. Between that positive approach and the leadership role he has embraced, Jones sees a player ready to blossom.
"No question Riley is ready for that next jump," Jones said. "He is just a different person who has gotten older, bigger, stronger and more confident."
Fox is convinced that his decision to go to Yale will pay high dividends over the next few years as he chases league championships and NCAA Tournament wins while securing himself a path to the NBA.
He said he has remained close to former Yale teammates John Poulakidas and Bez Mbeng, who have been in NBA camps, and used them as validation he is in the right place.
"They are tremendous role models," Fox said. "It is a huge resource to have when guys that you played against every day and are close to you are doing what you want to do and have been in a place you have been. It's huge for me and talking to them and getting their advice. You can follow their work ethic and how they went about playing when they were here to get to where you want to be."
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This article originally published at Why Connecticut native Riley Fox is 'ready for that next jump' with Yale basketball.