Florida might still have spots open on the 2024-25 roster but that isn’t stopping the coaching staff from maintaining their long-term vision as they recently welcomed wing Ian Parham to campus. Parham is an electric 6’5” wing in the class of 2026, and Florida getting him on campus already shows they see big things for the young athlete with pro potential.
Parham resides in Fort Lauderdale and attends Calvary Christian Academy. He also holds a passport from Belize–something that has played a key role in his development. Earlier this month Parham was in Argentina playing for Belize’s U18 team in the FIBA Americup where he got excellent experience as one of the younger players on the roster playing against some outstanding players. Belize, a country of around 400,000 people, was tasked with going up against powerful basketball countries like the USA, Argentina, Dominican Republic, and Brazil–and Belize fought admirably. They suffered their fair share of blowout losses, but a group stage win over Brazil stands as one of the biggest wins in Belize’s international basketball history.
Playing a key role in the rotation, Parham finished the event averaging 8.5 points, 2.5 assists, and 2.5 rebounds per game. He had 14 points in the huge win over Brazil, and chipped in 12 against a mighty American team that dominated the event.
Last season Parham also competed for Belize in the U17 FIBA Centrobasket event, averaging 8.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game.
These have been valuable events for Parham who has been one of the younger players on his team, and given that Belize isn’t traditionally loaded with talent he has had the opportunity to play a big role. While that has meant some growing pains (he had 8 turnovers in one game of the U18 Americup and averaged 3.7 turnovers per game) it was also an opportunity for him to go out against top competition and try to make something happen for him and his teammates.
As a player, the first thing that jumps out about Parham is his length and athleticism. 6’5” might not seem crazy, but he already looked plenty long and that’s before you remember he’s in the class of 2026 and won’t be in college for a couple of years. He is already extremely athletic, and is the kind of player that makes eye popping plays when you don’t expect it. Watching the FIBA events he had a number of plays where he grabbed a rebound or caught a pass with his back to the basket, and just when you thought he’d have to throw the ball out to a teammate because he was in traffic and in no place to score he’d elevate, twist in the air, and dunk the ball with authority.
Parham has also been a consistent three-point shooter, hitting 36% of his threes at the FIBA Americup and showcasing a smooth stroke that looks like he’s capable of an even better percentage (he certainly had to take his fair share of late shot clock heaves against teams like USA and Argentina).
Overall, you don’t have to squint to see why this is a player with NBA upside and the kind of talent that every high-major basketball team is looking for. Everyone wants long wings with defensive potential and the ability to knock down threes, and you simply can never have enough of these players. It’s also important to note that because of how sought-after these players are they are almost never available in the transfer portal so if you want one–you better recruit one from the high school ranks.
Currently Parham isn’t ranked in the class of 2026, but that isn’t anything to worry about since those rankings aren’t in depth yet, and Parham has been somewhat of a late riser. He grabbed some mid-major offers the minute teams were allowed to contact 2026 recruits, but recently he’d been going on some unofficial visits to high-major programs such as Florida and UCF. Parham is going to be a top target for the Gators and getting him on campus early is a huge step in what will be a recruitment centered around keeping him in the state of Florida.