The Florida Gators started the offseason with simply 5 returning scholarship gamers on the roster, and head coach Todd Golden and his recruiting workers have added 4 names by way of the switch portal to this point to reload the workforce.
Including Iona guard Walter Clayton Jr. will give the Gators a participant who can create his personal shot, and Marshall middle Micah Handlogten, Yale ahead EJ Jarvis and Seton Corridor huge man Tyrese Samuel will make up the majority of UF’s new-look frontcourt.
Though Golden misplaced quantity of expertise after his first yr in Gainesville, the transfers he’s introduced are sufficient to earn a spot within the winners column of 247Sports’ newest breakdown of early portal strikes.
“Florida’s newcomers ought to elevate, not detract, something from key returners like Will Richard and Riley Kugel,” Isaac Trotter wrote. “Golden is aware of a leap is critical for 12 months 2, and the Gators’ roster is beginning to come collectively in a giant manner.”
Handlogten is essentially the most attention-grabbing piece of the puzzle right here. He’s 7-foot-1-inches tall and has a number of years of eligibility left. Jarvis and Samuel are coming in as fifth-years, so they’re primarily one-year leases just like Kyle Lofton final season. After all, Lofton was one of many workforce’s best gamers in 2022-23.
Shedding Alex Fudge to the NBA draft was odd, but it surely leaves one other gap within the roster for Golden to fill by way of the portal. Samuel is a robust defender and rebounder, and Jarvis has the scoring contact to exchange a few of Fudge’s factors. However, it wouldn’t be insane to see the Gators add one other piece to the frontcourt, particularly with the constructive status UF is incomes as a switch portal vacation spot.
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