Putting a Wrap-Up on Summer Hoops Workouts
Friday, July 31, 2015 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Michael White has squeezed a lot into the last three months. Transition will do that to a new coach. For White and his Florida basketball staff, inheriting a program that for nearly two decades was under the watch of Billy Donovan has been quite the challenge.
One White and his crew have enthusiastically embraced.
Their new players, also.
On Wednesday, the Gators wrapped up summer workouts, which began in May with individual sessions and culminated over the last four weeks with a series of team workouts allotted by NCAA offseason rules.
In their brief time together, White and his former Louisiana Tech assistants invested zero time installing their system. Plenty of time for that down the line. Instead, they focused their attention on learning each player's skills set and work habits.
The getting-to-know-you phase wasn't just for the coaches, either. Remember, this is a squad that will roll out 13 players, eight of whom -- that's nearly 62 percent of the roster -- did not play a minute in a UF uniform last season. So while the program will have some familiar faces on the floor, this is a virtual overhaul. One, though, that has been welcomed by the personnel and with a seemingly fresh and invigorated sense of purpose.
Similar workouts will commence again with the start of the fall semester three weeks away, but the new coaches now have a decent baseline from which to operate before tipping off practice in late September.
Here is one offseason “takeaway” on each player based on workouts, practices, 5-on-5 pickup, strength and conditioning progress and some give-and-take with the coaching staff:
>>> Kasey Hill had a difficult sophomore season, to say the least. He wanted so badly, it seemed, to please Donovan that at times he was pressing versus just playing. In exit interviews, Donovan wanted Hill to work harder on his own. That message stayed with Hill for the new regime. Now a junior and with a reboot under this set of coaches, Hill has taken ownership in that area by becoming a fixture in the gym, working on his craft individually. Yes, that includes his jumpshot (37.9 percent). The Gators don't need him to bomb 3s, but they definitely need Hill to hit 15-footers, be light years better at the free-throw line (43.6 percent in SEC play) and make defenses honor his dribble-drives with double teams. They also need him to be a leader. He's working on it all and the staff likes what they see thus far.
>>> Last week marked the one-year anniversary of guard/forward DeVon Walker (pictured top of page) tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee; not that anyone would have known it from watching the fourth-year junior run, jump, finish breaks and defend his brains out the last month or so. Walker didn't just play this summer like he had some catching up to do, he played like he had some making up to do. He missed a season when the Gators sorely needed his leadership and character behind the scenes. Well, the 6-6, 212-pound Walker (up from 180 as a freshman) also appears to have matured into a pretty good-looking player who now needs to show some consistency on offense to go with his unbridled effort and new-found physicality. Whether he's developed more consistency in his shot (30.9 percent in limited minutes during UF's 2014 Final Four campaign) remains to be seen, but Walker definitely used the year off to completely change his body and looks like an ideal fit for White's teams like to do.
>>> Sophomore Chris Chiozza is 15 pounds thicker from when he reported as a rookie, up to 175, and hasn't lost any quickness. The extra strength is a boon for a guy with that kind of speed and ability for his size to find creases in the defense and get in the lane. The coaches believe he already was the team's best passer -- Chiozza had dynamic moments in transition last season and may get end to end faster than any player in the league -- but now he's improved his jump shot (32 percent from 3) and the coaches want him to have more confidence taking it. And, yes, he's working on his free-throw shooting too. Chiozza went just 47.7 percent at the stripe as a freshman.
>>> Welcome, KeVaughn Allen. The 6-foot-2, 183-pound shooting guard out of Arkansas looks like the best incoming freshman to arrive at UF since Bradley Beal. Will he start right away? He absolutely could. Allen's speed and quick-twitch athleticism is off the charts. He's a finish-around-the-rim scorer who can get his own shot (a rarity around here) and has good spot-up marksmanship. But what's really wowed the coaches is his work ethic. Note: The story goes that Allen went to the coaches to complain about going to the facility to shoot on his own only to find his key wasn't working. Turns out the keys don't work at 4 a.m. He goes about things tirelessly and, to the staff's dismay, way too quietly. Allen is church-mouse quiet and has to break out of it. His voice will be needed -- not to shout out plays (he's not going to play point guard, at least not yet) -- to communicate on defense in loud venues. It's a fixable trait. And to think Allen considered asking out of his letter-of-intent after Donovan left. Instead, he bought what White was selling and the Gators just might have a gem in the backcourt.
>>> Think you know everything about Dorian Finney-Smith by now? Actually, “Doe-Doe” hopes to fold even more into a game that he upgraded considerably from from his sophomore season (when he was SEC Sixth Man of the Year after shooting just 37 percent from the floor and 29 from 3) to his junior all-conference season (team-high 13.1 ppg and 6.2 rpg, plus 47 percent from the floor, 42.6 from 3). He's already the prototype for White's pressing, trapping, full-court chaos, and probably has more to give when it comes to rebounding. One thing Finney-Smith already has taken upon himself, as a fifth-year senior, is being the team's voice. He's been unafraid to speak up to teammates, both encouraging them and admonishing, if need be. As the best and most complete player on the team, he needs to do just that. This is a big year for “Doe-Doe” and he knows it.
>>> Devin Robinson's freshman stats weren't gaudy in any way (6.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg), especially for a Top 25 prospect. But in his defense, there were just too many games when Robinson was mismatched at his position. Now 6-9 and 195 pounds, Robinson is an inch taller, 15 pounds heavier and needs to back up his size with more aggression. Too often, he fell in love with the 3-point shot (only 25.6 percent) rather than using his length and bounce to attack the paint. That's what he'll be asked told to do this season as a battle-tested sophomore; find other ways to score than parking at the arc. Oh, and he'll also be asked told to rebound (at both ends) and take advantage of that wingspan on defense. Robinson's ceiling extends to the O'Connell Center rafters. Now, he has to reach it.
>>> In four years at Louisiana Tech, White and his staff never had a post presence remotely like sophomore center John Egbunu, the transfer from USF who sat out last season per NCAA rules. He's 6-11, 255 pounds and possesses stunning explosion around the basket. He's not polished offensively (and needs to work on his free throws), but that's OK. He's honing moves in the paint. Where Egbunu, who averaged 7.4 points and 6.2 rebounds as a raw freshman with the Bulls, can really do damage is floating around the glass for offensive boards and drawing double teams on the block that lead to pass-outs for open shooters. Defensively, he has to be more disciplined with his feet to avoid foul trouble, but Egbunu will do some Windex work on the glass and be nasty shot blocker. How will he transition to an up-tempo style? The coaches are frothing at the thought of him in the back of the press.
>>> Guard Brandone Francis-Ramirez, out of Jacksonville by way of the Dominican Republic, arrived at UF last fall but was not academically cleared to join the team until after the first semester and ineligible to play in games. He flashed often on the scout team during practices, but spent most of his time trying to catch up, both in the classroom and in his conditioning. Now, Francis is 20 pounds lighter (and a redshirt freshman, by classification) and looked upon as a fit at either the one, two or three positions because of his combination of size (a solid 6-5, 205), scoring, shooting and passing. Note: Regarding the latter, the last Gator to dish some of the no-look passes that come off Francis' hands was Jason Williams. Francis is, to put it mildly, high-spirited between the lines. He will battle. But he's also been told he needs to manage his emotions better. Assuming he properly channels that competitiveness, Francis will be a fixture in the rotation at a variety of places on the floor.
>>> Senior forward Alex Murphy missed a chunk of the summer while playing for Finland at the World University Games in South Korea. Murphy averaged a team-high 20 points and 7.3 rebounds -- he went for 25 and 13 in the tournament opener against Japan -- as Finland finished 14th out of the 23-team field. The coaches actually noticed a difference, confidence-wise, when Murphy returned from the Games. He's fitter than last year, which will help in White's 94-foot game. We pretty much know what we get with Murphy. He can really run, jump and play in transition, but he's never going to be the spot-up shooter like brother and former UF star Erik Murphy (just like Erik will never be the athlete Alex is). Look for Alex, now a fifth-year player, to be better than the 18-percent 3-point shooter of a season ago.
>>> Another midseason arrival last season, 6-11 center Schuyler Rimmer transferred from Stanford, where he saw limited action, to walk on for the Gators. The Orlando Boone product practiced during the second semester and in the months since increased his strength and vertical jump (improved his jumpshot too) while slimming down his frame. Rimmer will turn eligible at the end of the first semester and figures to spell Egbunu with the minutes in the pivot. You won't go bug-eyed at his athleticism, but Rimmer, now a junior, will be where he's supposed to be and may surprise some people around the basket in his limited time.
>>> Clearly, Allen headlines the freshmen class, but there could be roles for both Kevarrius Hayes and Keith Stone. You can only play five guys at a time, so just how or where these two fit in as rookies is something that figures to play itself out into the start of the regular season. The 6-9, 210-pound Hayes, out of Live Oak (Fla.) Suwannee, has a bounce and threshold for energy the coaches adore. Plays hard. Hayes' length is evident on the defensive end, as he seems to have a knack for tipping shots (and is very willing to bring help from the weak side). Offensively, he's raw, but he can afford to be. With Egbunu, Rimmer and Hayes, the Gators figure to have a 3-headed option at the center spot. Stone, out of Deerfield Beach (Zion Lutheran) was something of a late-bloomer on the recruiting circuit, but give the credit he wanted; he wanted desperately to be a Gator to that point that when he committed UF had no scholarships and he fended off all suitors. The 6-8, 225-pound Stone already has shed 15 pounds and in just a month showed improvement with his agility going end to end. He has a really nice shooting touch and probably projects as a stretch-4 type, but still has a lot to learn about the game, especially on defense.
>>> OK, so there hasn't been anything to observe from Justin Leon, who isn't due on campus until the start of the fall semester. The 6-8, 200-pound forward is transferring from Shawnee Community College in Ullin, Ill., where he was a junior college All-American after averaging 21.5 points and 10 rebounds per game. Leon originally signed with Louisiana Tech, but wanted to play for White. He'll have lots of catching up to do on his conditioning -- and there will be a JuCo-to-Division I adjustment -- but the staff loved the guy's motor during his recruitment.
