Florida basketball had to practically rebuild its roster from scratch this past offseason, relying on the NCAA transfer portal for reinforcements ahead of the 2023-24 campaign.
While the new crew has provided plenty of production for the Gators, one player has stood out from the rest, according to ESPN’s Ari Wasserman. That is forward [autotag]Tyrese Samuel[/autotag], who has been a beast in the paint for the Orange and Blue this season.
“Samuel was a consistent piece at Seton Hall for four seasons but is seeing the biggest role of his career in Gainesville, and his production has risen across the board,” Borzello notes. “He’s now averaging 13.3 points, 8.4 rebounds, 1.0 blocks and is shooting 57.7% from the field — all career highs.”
While Samuel has been a significant addition to the, the 6-foot-10-inch, 239-pound frontcourt bruiser’s free-throw shooting still leaves a tremendous amount to be desired. While Florida is among the best at getting to the charity stripe, the graduate student has made just 56 of 102 attempts, which works out to a 54.9% clip from the line.
Guards Zyon Pullin and Walter Clayton both earned an honorable mention on this list.
The Gators will return home to host Auburn inside the O’Connell Center on Saturday, Feb. 10. Tipoff is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.
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