* Third in a series looking at the UF men's basketball spring signees.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Toward the end of his historic University of Florida run,
Billy Donovan had a philosophy when it came to his basketball roster. Specifically, to transfers.
He wanted a sit-out guy. Every year, if possible.
Vernon Macklin came from Georgetown.
Mike Rosario from Rutgers,
Dorian Finney-Smith from Virginia Tech.
Alex Murphy from Duke.
John Egbunu from South Florida.
Anthony Duruji
Players that transfer and have to sit out a season reduce the number of available scholarship players on game day, but are also valuable assets in practice and scout-team preparation. They also reduce — eliminate, actually — the need to placate their minutes on game day.
Do not underestimate the latter point.
The UF coaches believe
Anthony Duruji, a 6-foot-7, 215-pound forward who played the last two seasons at Louisiana Tech, will be a very good player for the Gators, but first he'll have to take a seat at the end of the Florida bench during the 2019-20 season, per NCAA transfer rules. Duruji, you see, is not a graduate transfer, so the instant-eligibility process will not be in play — and that's fine.
The Gators will be better off for it.
Duruji, out of Germantown, Md., arrived in Ruston, La., with a reputation as more of an athlete than basketball player, but worked to improve his across-the-board skills. He's a good shooter who can put the ball on the deck and defend. Last season, as a sophomore, Duruji started 33 games at La Tech on the wing, including a November loss at LSU when he scored 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds. He finished the year at 12.2 points per game, shooting nearly 47 percent from the floor and 34 from the 3-point line, to go with 6.2 rebounds.
With the sophomore return of forward
Keyontae Johnson and shooting guard
Noah Locke, plus the arrival of small forward
Scottie Lewis and combo guard
Tre Mann, a pair of freshmen and McDonald's All-Americans, the Gators appear well stocked on the perimeter. Assuming everyone is healthy, a fifth guy in that mix could create something of a logjam and lead to a competition for minutes. Competition is good, of course, but the bottom line is the Gators don't really need Duruji
next season.
But the fact he'll be there, practicing, lifting weights and being indoctrinated to the system and the culture, means the UF coaches aren't under a lot of pressure to go recruit a top 30- or 40-type guy. They'll already have a proven small forward, with a 12-and-6 resume in Conference USA, ready to step into the mix as a more mature, more developed fourth-year junior in '20-21.
So, while everybody is focusing on that last Florida scholarship vacancy — the one ticketed for a grad-transfer or junior college "big," which is a true position of need and one where the Gators are looking for production and minutes — Duruji will show up for Summer "B" and begin acclimating to UF basketball under Coach
Mike White. He'll be an afterthought next season.
But an impact player the season after that one. At least, that's the plan.
It's a plan that's worked pretty well around these parts before.
* Part 1: How Jason Jitoboh Fits In
* Part 2: How Ques Glover Fits In
