Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – We interrupt the Florida-Miami football hype for some basketball intel. 
 
The fall semester began just over a week ago and Todd Golden wasted no time getting his third and most talented team back on the floor to resume workouts in the run-up to the start of preseason practice Sept. 24. 
  In fact, UF fans arriving early for Saturday's season-opening football game (Kickoff: 3:45 p.m.) can get a preview of coming hoops attractions, with the Gators holding an open practice in Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center that will begin around 11 a.m. Duck into the air-conditioned O'Dome for a break from the heat, but also to get a first-look at some duck-ins from 6-foot-10, 255-pound sophomore Rueben Chinyelu, the team's new center by way of Washington State. Or the impressive football-like, made-for-defense physique of 6-2, 210-pound senior guard Alijah Martin, the former Florida Atlantic standout. And, yes, 7-9 walk-on freshman center Olivier Rioux will be there, too. 
 
So will senior Walter Clayton Jr., with his new haircut and new role of point guard No. 1 heading into the 2024-25 season. 
 
There's been some consternation among UF fans regarding the decision not to sign a so-called "true point guard" via the transfer portal, ala Zyon Pullin last year. Golden and his staff certainly weighed the option, but Clayton's commitment upon returning from the NBA evaluation process – "He has raised the bar for himself," Golden said – along with the rising-stock play of junior Denzel Aberdeen, the addition of Martin, the return of maturing sophomore Kajus Kublickas and late-summer addition of Slovenian combo Urban Klavzar, who was an offensive standout in the 2024 European Cup, provides options.
 
"I feel like we got multiple point guards on this team," Clayton said Friday.  For the record, Clayton is the option that allows Golden to sleep best at night. Everyone in the Hugh Hathcock Basketball Complex believes Clayton is in for a monster senior year.  
 
"Is Walter a natural pure guard? No. is he a great playmaker? Yes," Golden said. "Is he a great scorer? Yes. Do you want the ball in his hands a lot? Yes. He's continued to work and grind to try to be an all-around ball-handler and playmaker."
 
Clayton led the team in scoring last season at 17.6 points per game, the highest average by a Florida player in 20 years (Anthony Roberson, 17.9 in 2004) on the highest-scoring team – at 85.6 points per game – in Florida history. On the distribution side, Clayton had 93 assists and 80 turnovers. The former probably wasn't enough, the latter admittedly too many, hence a lot of extra player development work with Taurean Green and Jordan Talley the last couple months.
 
And the way the Gators intend to play – fast in the open floor, multiple ball screens in the halfcourt – will best suit the personnel. 
 
"The way the game is going, the way it's changing, you don't really need a [true] point guard," Clayton said, a reference to the trend toward position-less basketball. "For us, there's going to be a lot of kicking the ball up the floor this year and a lot of guys coming off ball screens. We'll be all right." 
 
Don't discount Aberdeen, either. He's had a sensational offseason to match what he did late in the regular season. He's also the closest thing the Gators have a prototype PG.
 
"ZP was a ball-dominant player. He had his hands on the ball a lot, so we're going to be different in that way," Golden said of Pullin, who garnered 2023 All-Southeastern Conference first-team honors after averaging 15.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.9 assists and just 1.3 turnovers per game in leading the Gators to a 24-12 record and first NCAA Tournament berth in three years. "But to be truthful, I'm not concerned about [point guard] for this year. Different doesn't mean it's going to affect our efficiency at all." 
 
Notes: In the three stops (Gainesville, Tallahassee and Sarasota) on his summer Gator Caravan (sponsored by Gators Boosters Inc., and Florida Victorious) this month, Golden was candid about the team's need to improve a defense that finished 94^th nationally (compared to 12^th in offense), including 318^th in forced-turnover percentage. The addition of Chinyelu in the post and Martin on the perimeter are significant upgrades on that end. … This week's pick-up games were incredibly high-level on the competition front and a great way to drop the flag on the semester. After the games Tuesday, Golden praised his players and told them how difficult they were going to make his job, relative to playing rotation this season. ...  Senior wing Will Richard, who also went through the NBA eval process, has had a lights-out summer shooting the ball, the far-and-away winner in the combined statistical shooting contests. He looks poised to bounce back from a junior season when he hit 34.5 percent from the 3-point line. That wasn't bad, but it was below his 36.6 career average from deep and a step back from 39.8 his sophomore year. … Chinyelu, fellow transfer Sam Alexis (from Tennessee-Chattanooga), plus returning sophomores Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh, give the Gators four lengthy, athletic and wildly active bigs who can really run the floor. The pickup-game matchups between Chinyelu and the 6-11 Condon have been something to behold. It will be a great relief (and release) for both to turn their physicality and willingness to fight and play hard on another team. … For those attending Saturday's practice without a roster, Klavzar will wear No. 7 and Chinyelu will wear No. 9. They will be the first players in team history to wear single-digit numbers after 1 through 5. … Somebody will probably ask, so just in case: Rioux wears a size 20 shoe.