Thursday, October 10, 2019 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
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By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Center Gorjok Gak dislocated his left shoulder during practice this week and will be sidelined from the Florida basketball team indefinitely.
Gak, the 6-foot-11, 235-pound fourth-year junior from Australia, suffered the injury during Tuesday's live scrimmage. An MRI that night revealed the damage and, in turn, put a dent in the Gators' front-court depth by removing a player who'd battled back from a knee injury that cost him the entire 2018-19 season and put himself in position to contribute in '19-20. Gorjok Gak
"I feel horrible for him," UF coach Mike White said Thursday. "Gorjok was playing his basketball since he's been here."
Gak, who averaged 2.0 points, 2.1 rebounds and 7.7 minutes in 44 games over his first two seasons, was selected to play for his native Australia in the 2017 World University Games in Taiwan, but while there began experience swelling in his knee. The issue became chronic and plagued Gak throughout his '17-18 sophomore season, often limiting him at practice. Gak underwent surgery after the season and his recovery went deep enough into the '18-19 campaign to keep him off the floor and qualified him for a medical redshirt season.
"You cannot believe how hard the guy has worked to get back from the knee injury," UF trainer Dave Werner said. "He was in here every day, on his own, either for knee rehab or basketball, and had become a much better player. He was going to help us."
With standout graduate-transfer Kerry Blackshear, fourth-year junior Dontay Bassett, top-50 freshman signee Omar Payne and Gak, the Gators appeared as deep as they'd been in years in the post. Now, they'll be a man down. For how long remains to be seen.
