Grad-transfer center Kerry Blackshear gives the Gators a proven and productive low-post presence the program has been looking for the last few seasons.
Blackshear Is Here
Friday, August 2, 2019 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
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By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Just a couple weeks ago, Kerry Blackshear was rolling up the Florida Turnpike and merging on to Interstate-75, as a multitude of thoughts danced in his head. The change. The transition. The eagerness. The possibilities. The excitement (especially, the excitement). The confluence of all flashed in some way as Blackshear turned his car onto the University of Florida campus to begin the next chapter of his life.
He admits it felt a little strange at the time.
"I thought I was done with all that, but suddenly I kind of felt like a freshman again," Blackshear said this week. "More than anything, I felt an excitement that I'd had before but hadn't had in a while; an excitement for a new beginning, a new situation, a chance to be around a new group of guys and this new opportunity."
The feeling, obviously, was mutual.
In Blackshear, the 6-foot-10, 242-pound graduate transfer and former center from Virginia Tech, the Gators not only scored the No. 1 player on the so-called college "free-agent" market, but also filled the program's glaring need for a low-post presence. UF didn't just get a good "big," they got a second-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference star who averaged 14.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 30 minutes a game for a team that went 26-9 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16. After testing the NBA Draft's underclassman evaluation process, Blackshear decided to play one more year of college basketball at a different venue. His coach at Virginia Tech left for Texas A&M. Several of his teammates and close friends had graduated or turned pro. So Blackshear went searching for a different challenge as well. When his name popped up in transfer portal every program in the country took notice. A case can be made that Blackshear was the most coveted player in the six years since the grad-transfer rule went into effect.
Everyone was interested.
"I loved it. It was a good problem to have," Blackshear said. "There were a lot of valuable and life-changing options for me. I just wanted to take my time and try to make the best decision.'
He narrowed the choices to Florida, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky before choosing the Gators, the team he cheered for ("I loved Tim Tebow. Idolized him. I wore No. 15 because of him.") while growing up in Orlando. He was a standout player at Evans and was recruited by all but one of the Division-I programs in the state.
Guess which one.
Funny how things work out.
"It's still surreal to me," he said. "Each day, I feel more and more like a Gator."
Kerry Blackshear (center) is locked in on associate head coach Al Pinkins during a big man workout Thursday. Also pictured (from left): freshman Jason Jitoboh, redshirt junior Gorjok Gak, freshman Omar Payne (behind Blackshear) and redshirt junior Dontay Bassett.
Blackshear, who goes by "KJ" (as in "Kerry Jr."), arrived in Gainesville on July 12 and that afternoon met his new teammates at the UF practice facility. The acclimation phase went smoothly.
It's been a honeymoon ever since.
"Seamless," Florida coach Mike White said of Blackshear's transition into the program. "You'd think he'd been here a couple of years already."
Added associate head coach Al Pinkins: "He's everything we thought he'd be."
At Tech, Blackshear not only stuffed the stat sheets, but carved out a reputation as a consummate teammate and team player. He knows the game and plays it the right way, all the time.
Example: UF assistant coach Jordan Mincy recently pulled aside one of the team's prized freshman, power forward Omar Payne, to get some intel. He asked Payne about Blackshear and, specifically how the veteran/new guy was going about his business during pickup games. Was he hunting shots? Was he trying to take over? "Coach," Payne said. "He mostly passes the ball. Hardly ever shoots it."
This was telling, but not surprising given what they learned of Blackshear during their whirlwind, full-court-pressure-like recruiting process.
"A lot of grad transfers, with it being their last go-round, they're like, 'OK, I'm getting mine,' " Mincy said. "That's not him. That's not his personality. He's very humble. He talks. He leads. He just has a grown-man approach to everything."
Example II: As Mincy was speaking, he motioned to the other side of the court. Several Gators, having just completed one of their allotted summer practices, remained in the gym for some extra work. At the far end of the floor was fourth-year junior Dontay Bassett, a spot reserve in the post the last two seasons and a player Blackshear certainly will take a bunch of minutes from in 2019-20. Bassett was taking rapid-fire shots around the perimeter, as a manager rebounded and passed the ball to another UF player, who in turn fed rhythm passes to Basset.
That teammate was Blackshear.
Grown-man approach. Team-first approach.
"Everyone is happy that he came here," said Bassett, who along with center Gorjok Gak will be off-campus roommates with Blackshear this season. "We all get along with each other, but we also compete against each other. The goal is to get better every day, individually and as a team."
Into that equation, Blackshear will roll 103 games worth of ACC-proven confidence, having played headlined roles in victories over Duke, North Carolina and Virginia (to name a few) along the way.
"He's been in college for four years and knows what it takes to win," sophomore guard Noah Locke said. "Obviously, he has a lot to offer."
He'll do so in subtle ways. That's his way. Blackshear will be the first to say his addition to the team— as high-profile as it was, given the immense expectations that accompanied it — is not about him.
"I think I just have to be myself," said Blackshear, who in addition to a degree in public relations from Tech left there just three credits shy of a master's in leadership, and will begin work in UF's sports management master's program this month. "There's a balance to it. I'm not going to come in here and try to change anything or take anything away from the situation here. I want to add to it. I want to help lead in the ways I know I can lead, but I'm always looking to learn, too. I don't think you can ever stop learning. I can learn from Noah. I can learn from Gak. I can learn from 'Teezy' [Bassett]. I can learn from [freshman guard] Tre Mann. All these guys have something to bring to the table. I just want to do my part."
Obviously, it won't be a bit part.
The Gators have big plans for what they can do offensively with Blackshear, be it through post-ups, duck-ins, pick and rolls or high-post plays where he will be a threat to pass, drive or shoot (yes, he can make 3s) and thus stretch the floor. On defense, he's remarkably sound in his fundamentals, with effort and communication to match. To the latter point, the practice gym is much louder these days, as the team is getting heavy doses of defensive principles in their summer workouts. Talking has been a problem with this team the last couple seasons. It will not be in 2019-20.
Blackshear's voice booms during practice, as he calls out and fights through screens.
Oftentimes, during dead balls, the talking continues, but in a different way. Blackshear talks to teammates between reps, breaking down the previous play, making corrections, asking questions or providing encouragement.
"KJ has taught me so much already," said freshman and McDonald's All-America forward Scottie Lewis. "I'm an emotional guy. I get frustrated sometimes. But he'll grab me and remind we have so much time to learn and get better before the season starts."
It'll be a highly anticipated season, to be sure, with several national college basketball analysts already placing lofty expectations on a team that will return just four players from last season's 20-16 squad that reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Florida, because of the late addition of Blackshear, will enter '19-20 as a fashionable pick to win the Southeastern Conference and make a deep tournament run.
"We have a lot of different weapons, so now is about just figuring out how we can effectively manage them all and use them as efficiently as possible — where guys are happy on and off the floor — and continue to learn from each other relationship-wise," said Blackshear, the lone senior on a team that will return three sophomore starters and roll in a talented six-man freshman class that ranked among the nation's top 10, plus two sit-out transfers. "We're all different individuals, so I think it's like a quick turn-around we have to do to put it all together. It'll be a lot of work, but we're all excited about that work." Blackshear at Virginia Tech
Blackshear knows about work. He's already amassed more than 1,000 points and 600 rebounds in his career. He's won at Cameron Indoor Stadium, faced up against Zion Williamson and experienced the heartache of a last-second loss in the NCAA Tournament. There's very little he hasn't done at this level, yet so much he hopes still to accomplish.
"I'm looking forward to playing in a new league against different players and seeing all the nice SEC arenas," he said.
In a perfect world, Blackshear would have drawn rave reviews from the NBA and already begun his pro career. That didn't happen. So he chose to return to college for one more season — and further seasoning — while also opting for an altogether diverse college experience. He would love to win a conference title and compete for a national championship, of course, but the chance to be an all-league player or even All-American are goals that drive him as well.
His No. 1 priority, however, will be the team.
"This year, for me, will be a chance to be a professional in a non-professional environment and provide opportunities to do things I've never done before," Blackshear said. "There are a lot of bars and markers I have set for myself, but they all have to do with us winning. The best opportunities for everyone comes through winning. I enjoy winning more than anything — and believe me, I hate, hate, hate losing — and want to bring a winning mentality to a bunch of guys who I think have a lot of the same makeup as me."
The next chapter has begun. What a fascinating story it could turn out to be.
