Billy Donovan and the men’s basketball team picked up their first 2014 commitment when Chris Chiozza announced his intentions to play college basketball at Florida.
Chiozza is a 5’11” 165-pound point guard from Memphis, Tennessee. Chiozza is a creative player on the court and a prototypical one guard. He’s a pass-first player who looks to get his teammates open looks.
While he is undersized, Chiozza uses other aspects of his game to make up for his lack of height and size. First, he is a very tough player. Chiozza shows ability to be able to get to the basket, absorb contact and finish at the rim. For a player of his size, Chiozza will have to be tough to play at the college level. He also has great vision, being able to find an open man from anywhere on the floor.
Second, Chiozza has a lightning quick first step and elevates quickly on his jump shot. This allows him to pull up quickly and create space from his defender, allowing him to get shots off. A solid shooter, Chiozza will keep defenders honest with his shooting ability while running the offense from point.
Lastly, being an undersized player means Chiozza has to make up for his lack of size elsewhere. He does that by being a willing and able defender.
Chiozza is a 3-star or 4-star prospect depending on which recruiting service you look at but is a player who fits Billy Donovan’s mold and should be a great addition to the roster.
Chiozza spoke with Jeremy Woo of SNY.tv and told Woo that Florida was always one of his favorite schools.
“Florida’s always been one of my top three schools since I was a little kid. I’ve always loved watching them,” Chiozza said. “I’d also love to play with Kasey Hill and Chris Walker if they’re still there.”
There is an added benefit of adding Chiozza to the roster. He is high school and AAU teammates with 5-star, Leron Black. Black is a 5-star power forward and the No. 16 player in the country according to Rivals.com. While it is still early in the recruiting process and Black could end up anywhere, a source has told Gator Country that the two (Chiozza and Black) are likely to end up at the same college. That sentiment is also something that Chiozza spoke with Woo about a week ago.
“They’re [Florida] also recruiting my teammate Leron [Black] and that’s a school where we could play together. We haven’t said for sure if we’re going to the same school,” Chiozza said of he and Black. “We’ve said we want to play with each other.”
While adding Chiozza to the 2014 recruiting class is a big get for Donovan and the Gators, being able to add the talented duo of Black and Chiozza would be an absolute steal.