Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The roster-building process has changed so drastically in the wake of NCAA transfer rules and fallout from the free COVID year. There's no telling how a program's restock is going to go, what with transfers sometimes holding out until late in the summer. It's not an ideal way to construct a team, but welcome to present-day college basketball. 
 
Take Florida, for example. The Gators actually had the bulk of their core for most of the offseason, what with a pair of freshman arriving back in May and four transfers checking in for Summer "A" semester. But then another transfer made it for Summer "B" and one more freshman got here only a month ago from overseas, just in time for the first workout of the fall semester. 

Come what may, here we go.

The Gators officially open fall practice Monday. 
 

I'll go ahead and throw this out there: This 2023-24 UF team is much better than Todd Golden's first Gator squad that went 16-17 after taking a turn south following the season-ending injury to three-time All-Southeastern Conference forward Colin Castleton (eventually posting just the second losing record for the program in 25 years) and ending the season with a humbling, ugly and uninspired loss to Central Florida in the NIT. This team not only has upgraded its talent, but also its size, length, athleticism, rebounding and shooting, plus its overall competitiveness. The roster makeup, particularly the low-post additions, will allow the Gators to morph from a five-out offensive look to a three-out, with lots of ball-screen and pick-and-roll, rim-running activity initiated by solid set of guards with pretty good resumes. Glass-crashing will be better on both ends. In other words, the way Golden wants to play, rather than has to play.

Translation: Florida will be much improved, but whether that translates to a bunch more victories, obviously, we'll have to wait and see. The rest of the Southeastern Conference, already one of the top leagues in the country, got better, too.   
 
The overviews and projected roles below are based on three months of watching summer practices, individual instruction sessions and 5-on-5 pickup. All projections, of course, are subject to change. Some surely will change deeper into fall workouts and again when the season tips off Nov. 6 against Loyola Maryland and minutes are distributed. How each player handles their roles – be it starring ones or cameo appearances – will go a long way to determine how successful the Gators are in Golden Year 2. 
 
For now, it's all conjecture, but not without some baseline data and eye-test observations. 
 
 
BEST PLAYER – Riley Kugel 
  He is the team's most talented player, same as he was at the end of his '22-23 freshman season. That's saying something, given this team (without question) is better across the board than last season and, frankly, so is Kugel, the 6-foot-5, 207-pound combo guard. When Castleton broke his wrist in February, Kugel became the team's go-to guy, finishing the season by averaging 17.3 points on 49.6-percent from the floor over the final 10 games. In fact, he became the first UF freshman since Bradley Beal in 2012 to post 10 consecutive double-figure scoring games and also knocked down 40 percent from the 3-point line in SEC play on his way to league All-Freshman honors. Kugel toyed briefly with thoughts of turning pro – and currently is showing up as a mid-range first-rounder in a slew of 2024 NBA mock drafts – but upon his return was challenged by Golden to be more consistent and lead by example. He's got so much to his game, starting with that explosive first step, his step-back jumper and an underrated passing eye. The basketball stuff will show up, which was Part 1 of Golden's ask. As for Part 2? Kugel is not a vocal guy, but his body language sometimes speaks for him. His willingness to defer when situations dictate -- Kugel is going to be a marked man a lot of nights -- will go a long way toward galvanizing the team and its chemistry. So will his ability to get a shot off whenever he wants. Golden has high standards for Kugel. The coach won't expect perfection, but he will expect growth. 
 
 
ALPHA IMPACT – Walter Clayton Jr.
  That lead-by-example thing for Kugel will not be a thing for Clayton, who played the last two seasons for Rick Pitino at Iona and was named 2023 Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Year after topping the Gaels in a bunch of statistical categories (and guiding them to a second straight league championship) and doing so with a take-charge, take-no-prisoners demeanor. The Gators have not had an on-floor, strong personality like Clayton in some time. And make no mistake: Florida recruited him to be that guy, assuming he picks his spots. Oh, and did we mention he can shoot? The 6-2, 195-pound Clayton, who won back-to-back Class 6A state championships at Bartow (Fla.) High, averaged 16.8 points per game on 45.5 percent from the floor, 43.1 from the 3-point line and led the nation at 95.3 percent from the free-throw line. Throw in 4.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists per game and that fiery in-game attitude – Clayton was one of country's top-ranked safeties before quitting football to concentrate on basketball – and UF figures to have upgraded its competitiveness between the lines. The Gators are expected to play a three-guard lineup exclusively, and while neither Clayton nor Kugel are true point guards (read on) both are more than capable of taking turns on the ball. In Clayton's case, his ability to get in the paint and score matches his skill at delivering lob passes to rolling screeners. Opposing bigs will have to pick what to guard and Clayton will be able to counterpunch. 


SHOOTER – Will Richard
  Statistically and analytically, Richard had an excellent debut season after transferring from Belmont. The 6-4, 206-pound wing finished in the top 5 percent in the country in offensive efficiency and effective field-goal percentage, despite being asked to move from the perimeter to play an undersized "4" spot after the injury to Castleton. For the year, Richard averaged 10.4 points and 4.5 rebounds, while shooting 49.3 percent overall, 39.8 from the arc and 85.7 at the line. Almost all those numbers went up in SEC play (12.6 points, 4.7 boards, 50.4 floor, 41.6 arc, 84.4 free-throw line), which speaks to his consistency. The Gators aren't asking Richard to do a lot more in his junior season – similar digits on this deeper, more potent '23-24 team would be just fine – aside from maybe using his stature as the most respected player in the locker room to be more vocal; a steadying voice, perhaps, to Clayton's more direct one. That would be a good Yin and Yang. If Richard continues to execute his role as an elite, spread-the-floor shooter he will have a chance to have a similar role at the next level. 
 

FRESHMAN SURPRISE – Alex Condon & Thomas Haugh Florida's three-man freshman class was ranked dead-last in the SEC by a consensus of recruiting sites. Here's betting it won't look like the league's bottom class by season's end, thanks to Condon, the 6-11, 230-pound Australian, and Haugh, a long, energetic and athletic 6-9, 210-pound wing who definitely will find time as a board-crashing, play-making "3" man. Condon, full stop, has been the revelation of the run-up to the preseason. This is a kid who grew up playing Australian rules football and only took up basketball following a growth spurt about four years ago. He arrived with a wildly competitive streak and toughness to match. When the ball goes up, "Condo" is in the middle of the action. As far as low-post skills, he's something of a neophyte, but learning at a greyhound's pace. Condon can also shoot the long ball. While that thought might not sit too well with UF fans who have seen the likes of talented post men (like Castleton and Kerry Blackshear Jr. before him) floating the arc and launchings 3s without much success the last few years, he will get some looks out there also, despite the reconfigured offense. As for Haugh, what a breath of fresh air this young man has been. Though he graduated from high school in 2022, Haugh did a year of prep school and – get this – actually is older right now, as a freshman, than former UF forward Alex Fudge, who left after his '22-23 sophomore year to turn pro. Haugh, already up 16 pounds since May, sprints the court and soars to the rim. He looks a lot like the freshman Chandler Parsons, as far as build and style, but it's not so much his skill set that stands out as (like Condon) his toughness, competitiveness and knack for making winning plays. These are two outstanding young building blocks for the program, both with the right attitudes to match. They came in expecting nothing, but already have earned the right to be on the floor as rookies ... and they will be. Early. In fact, here's a bold prediction: Condon will be UF's most impactful freshman since Andrew Nembhard in '18-19.


PROVEN POST MAN – Tyrese Samuel
  Golden and his staff were not going to go through another season of getting abused on the glass (the Gators were among the worst rebounding teams in the country) and made acquiring big and banging bodies one of the priorities in the offseason. Enter Samuel, a 6-10, 239-pound grad-transfer forward with Big East pedigree, having played the last four years at Seton Hall. In '22-23, his first as a starter for the Pirates, Samuel averaged 11.0 points, 5.9 rebounds and shot 56.6 percent from the 2-point area in a league that was rated the third-hardest in the nation. Samuel is a wide-shouldered, full-grown, 23-year-old man with an impressive 7-4 wingspan and an understated feel for the game. On this team, he won't have to score, but he's shown an ability to put the ball on the deck and use his handles to create some opportunities for himself and others. He'll be active inside as far as rim-running, rebounds, extra-possession tips and a savvy ability to find the open man. Go ahead and pencil pen him into that "4" spot, with turns at the "5," as well.


FINAL PIECE, FINISHED PRODUCT – Zyon Pullin 
  In June, the Gators were prepared to head into the season with Clayton as the leader in the clubhouse to play point guard. About that time, however, Pullin pulled out of the NBA draft evaluation process and instantly was one of the best players remaining in the portal. The 6-4, 206-pound first-team All-Big West Conference point guard from California-Riverside ultimately picked UF over Xavier and LSU, giving the Gators a proven floor general with nearly 1,300 career points and 400 assists. He started 77 of 109 career games at UC-Riverside, including all but one the last three seasons, and combined to average nearly 15 points, grab 4.5 rebounds and dish 4.3 assists over 33 minutes a game. Pullin's finest all-around season was '22-23, when he scored 18.3 points per game, shot nearly 49 percent from the floor, 39.4 from the 3-point line and hit 77 percent of his free throws on a team that went 22-12 and finished third in the league. His 3-point percentages are decent (35.2 career), but he's not a volume shooter from deep. Pullin is a prober who looks to get in the lane and make good decisions with the ball, which includes taking high-percentage, high-efficiency 2-point shots, an area where he made good on over 50 percent of his attempts each of the last three seasons. He's a stout guard too, ready-made for the physical nature of a power five league. Think about a better version of Kyle Lofton; stronger, more athletic and willing to take (and capable of making) a big shot. 


RIM-RUNNER/PROTECTOR – Micah Handlogten
  At 7-1, he's the tallest player to come through the Florida program since Dwayne Schintzius roamed the paint from 1986-90. That said, he's not Schintzius, but he could be a poor man's version of, say, Walker Kessler. Remember him? Handlogten, a sophomore, was 2023 Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year at Marshall after averaging 7.6 points on over 66-percent shooting from the floor, plus 9.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 2.3 blocks per game. Those are way better numbers than Kessler put up as a freshman at North Carolina before blossoming into the 2022 SEC Defensive Player of the Year and first-round NBA pick in one season at Auburn. The 235-pound Handlogten, obviously, is a true "5," who ranked ninth in the country in effective field-goal percentage, 27^th in defensive rebounding percentage and 41^st in offensive rebounding percentage. Any number of times over the summer, he's been paired alongside Condon for what would be a long (and youthful) front court and, Golden hopes, one of many potential combinations that will further the team's quest to escape last season's rebounding debacle. Like Condon was raised as an Aussie football player, Handlogten grew up playing lacrosse, so he can move. Now he needs to get comfortable with the physicality of the SEC. He's up to 235 pounds (which help) and growing.


FRONT COURT GLUE GUY – EJ Jarvis
  He was UF's first addition from the portal after the 6-8, 240-pound grad-transfer forward from Yale was named second-team All-Ivy League and selected Florida over Miami and Georgetown. Jarvis, like several of the newest Gators, is athletic, has a nice feel for the game and won't mind mixing it up inside. He averaged 11.4 points on 55-percent from the floor to go with 5.5 rebounds per game and was part of three conference championship teams. Jarvis missed a few weeks of work with an injury and has some catching up to do, but he'll get there. Once there, he'll play with a quiet and stoic demeanor, but he will defend, rebound, take care of the ball and finish around the rim. In other words, he'll do all the things a team needs from a role-playing big. And let's not forget: He went to Yale, so the basketball IQ is a given. 
 

MOST IMPROVED – Denzel Aberdeen
  Yes, this is 2023, but Aberdeen is as close to a so-called "throw-back" as most college teams would get these days. Why? Well, he's still here, for starters. In this transfer era of instant-gratification-or-I'm-gone, the 6-5, 190-pound Aberdeen used his true freshman season (just 40 minutes over 12 games, with 19 points, 4 assists) as a learning experience and springboard to what he needed to do to get better and get on the floor as a sophomore. Now there's a rub to this. Right now, Aberdeen is good enough to play. But he's the fifth guy in what looks like a mostly four-guard rotation. That said, Aberdeen has gone toe-to-toe – almost routinely – with his competition during workouts and 5-on-5. He's a terrific athlete, armed with probably as explosive a vertical as Kugel, his high school teammate and co-state champion at Orlando Dr. Phillips. He's worked on his driving and finishing (he is a very nice floater), as well as his 3-point shooting, and is more comfortable, more aggressive than a year ago, which is supposed to happen with a freshman-turned-sophomore. Aberdeen's presence will hold the guys in front of him accountable, as the UF coaches will have no problem sticking him in the game. If he can maintain patience, the work ethic and growth in whatever role '23-24 brings, Aberdeen will eventually be a backcourt centerpiece in the program.


PROGRAM GUY – Aleks Szymczyk
  Szymczyk broke his left foot Aug. 29 and likely won't be cleared to return until sometime in December. Golden and the Gators already know what the 6-10, 250-pound center/forward will be able to provide because he gave it to them last season. As a freshman, "Shimmy" came from Germany late in the summer and played very little until he was forced into action – and significant minutes – following Castleton's injury, coupled with ineffective play from Jason Jitoboh (now at Tennessee State). In his first meaningful action, Szymczyk scored eight points (with a pair of 3s) and grabbed six rebounds in 21 minutes of a road loss at Arkansas. He'd played a total of 15 minutes for the season before that, showing the get-in-there moment was not too big for him. Despite the influx of new low-post players, Szymczyk worked hard over the summer and was doing his thing when the injury occurred. Assuming he takes on a similar program-first mindset akin to Aberdeen, Szymczyk will be an asset for the team, not just this season but down the line. 


SHOOTER ON THE MEND – Julian Rishwain
  Another guy working to get back. Rishwain is a 6-5, 200-pound fifth-year graduate wing by way of San Francisco, where he played two seasons for Golden and joined the program in June, less than five months after undergoing reconstructive surgery on a knee injury that ended his '22-23 season with the Dons in January. It was already a difficult season for Rishwain, who was shooting career lows of 26.9 percent from the floor and 24.3 percent from 3. That was not the shooter Golden coached for two seasons. In Golden's system, Rishwain banged 40.4 percent of his 218 long balls and as a sophomore nailed 63.2 percent from the 2-point area with his sneaky ability to put the ball down and get in the paint. He averaged 7.6 points over two years with Golden, who hopes to get the same version of Rishwain for the Gators. When? That's another matter. For now, Rishwain is getting up a bunch of shots daily (and a stunning amount of makes) before and after practice. By the time he gets cleared for contact work, it could deep enough into the season that rotations are set. So whether his role is with the '23-24 team – and what team couldn't use a proven shooter? – or as a sixth-year medical redshirt in '24-25 could be a discussion Rishwain and his coaches eventually will have. Ultimately, the decision will be the player's. 
 

LATE-ARRIVING POINT GUARD – Kajus Kublickas
  Imagine, say, the NBA Orlando Magic had a youth training program and team that competed against other such NBA training teams. Well, that's what it's like in a lot countries overseas. Lithuania, for example, where Kublickas, the 6-2 and 171-pound freshman point guard, played in the youth program for BC Zalgaris and actually got a couple swings with the pro team. That taste of high-level pro ball had a lot to do with the seamless – and fearless – way he stepped into things at Florida when he showed up just before the start of school in August. Kublickas was given a few basic concepts of the UF system, watched some dry offense, then was thrown into the mix. He was unfazed by it all, which the coaching staff loved. The steady-handed Kublickas has had some good, solid days. That said, there are four ball-dominant guards in front of him, so getting on the floor is going to be difficult. We'll see if he can demonstrate the same kind of program-first patience Aberdeen has and grow into a role for the future.
 

THE WALK-ONS The Gators have four walk-ons this season, as many as anyone who's been around the program for a while can remember. Back are guard Alex Klatsky for a fifth year, along with fourth-year wing Jack May, the son of former UF assistant and current Florida Atlantic coach Dusty May, who guided the Owls to the Final Four. The younger May toyed with the idea of transferring and playing at a lower level program, but opted to stick around. He hurt his knee earlier this summer, had surgery, but is cleared to begin practice Monday. The two new walk-ons – and Golden loves walk-ons 'cause he once was one – are senior Bennett Andersen, who played at Tampa Jesuit and spent the last two years as a manager for the team, and freshman Cooper Josefsberg, from Miami by way of Riviera Prep. That's a lot of extra bodies for practice and scout team, if need be.