Where The Athletic’s SEC men’s basketball preview ranks Gators

The Gators are a little lower in these rankings than you’d like to see but there is plenty of room for improvement.

Florida basketball has just one more non-conference contest before starting the new year with its Southeastern Conference slate. Ahead of the upcoming gauntlet of games, The Athletic’s Kyle Tucker previewed the league’s 14 member schools while also ranking where they stand prior to the start of SEC play.

The Gators did not have a specific player mentioned in the individual categories but did land at No. 8 in the rankings. The bottom-middle rank seems a bit harsh — though Todd Golden’s gang has looked rough at times as well — there appears to be some headroom for improvement if Florida can hang tough.

“The Gators return their No. 2 and No. 3 scorers, Will Richard and Riley Kugel, but that’s… about it,” Tucker begins. “Colin Castleton and Kyle Lofton entered the draft, Kowacie Reeves transferred to Georgia Tech, and a ton of production walked out the door.

“But second-year coach Todd Golden assembled one of the best transfer hauls in the country: All-Big West guard Zyon Pullin (18.3 ppg), MAAC Player of the Year Walter Clayton Jr. (16.8 ppg), Sun Belt Rookie of the Year and 7-foot-1 center Micah Handlogten (9.8 rpg, 2.3 bpg), All-Ivy League forward EJ Jarvis (11.3 ppg) and super senior Seton Hall starter Tyrese Samuel (11.0 ppg),” he continues.

“Three of the new guys shoot 39%-plus from three. Florida could finish much higher than eighth.”

At times, this team looks like it can hang with the best and then there are others when they have played down to their Quad 4 opponents’ level. If the Gators can continue to dominate the glass, get their free-throw shooting in order and improve on perimeter defense, the Orange and Blue could make some moves come March.

Next up for Florida are the Quinnipiac Bobcats, who travel to Gainesville on Saturday, Dec. 30, for Florida’s final non-conference game before the SEC schedule. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET and the game can be watched on ESPNU.

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