Really interesting takes on the Gators MBB transfer class. I particularly got jazzed about the Evan Miya ranking. Where Florida Basketball’s Transfer Class Ranks Nationally | GatorCountry.com
Analytics aside, it is mainly about meshing their respective games in time to make some real waves. Or using a common line, the whole is not equal to the sum of the parts. It should be fun watching the maturation process. I just hope most of the MBB posters don't get too optimistic from early success so that they crash emotionally when we get to the more beefy parts of the schedule. Yeah, that and world peace. Noble but pretty over-optimistic.
You are absolutely correct in that the final unmeasurable metric is chemistry. Perhaps the most important.
Rule #1: Get the Jimmies and Joes! Rule #2: Competent Coach to lead them through a tough schedule! Rule #3: Fans ride the rough waters of a team learning to play together and finding the best players at each position. Hopefully finding the winning formula. PS: Kentucky has been doing this since Cal has been there. Some kids thrive in this and others don’t. Some years they come together and other years they struggle. But be sure, they get tougher as the year progresses. I expect the unexpected, but it seems we have a team full of buying in to being a competitive team every time they hit the hardwood!
Floridagators.com is starting to get the roster info populated for the new guys. Micah Handlogten is now listed at 235 pounds, so he's getting to a size where he'll be able to compete against the bigger SEC guys. Tyrese Samuel is listed at 239 pounds. If you didn't know already, Walter Clayton, Jr. was MAAC POY last season and shot 43% from 3, and led the entire nation in free-throw percentage, 95.3%, hitting 102 out of 107. Get him in the lane!
Quite frankly, I am more interested in seeing the 2023/2024 incarnation of the basketball team than I am the football team. Not that I think we will be middling in football, just that what Golden did for this season is remarkable. Well, remarkable for a Florida program. The Kentuckys, Dukes, Kansas'. etc., are used to these kinds of gyrations. But more importantly, they are mainly multi-year and not one-and-done.
Yep, and it's a mix; unless I'm mistaken, Samuel, Pullin, Rishwain, and Jarvis all have one year of eligibility for the Gators. Handlogten, Clayton, Haugh, Condon, and Kublickas have multiple years of eligibility. I'm going to speculate that Rishwain may not play this season because he's recovering from a major injury, and will get a medical redshirt. But I don't know the particulars.
I see the potential for a solid BB squad this year. Of course I thought that last year too. Seems like the level of talent went up a notch, maybe 2. Should the team chemistry mesh as posted by rzinger, it may be a really fun season. I'm rooting for coach Golden!
