While Scottie Lewis and Kerry Blackshear Jr. have taken a lot of the attention from fans and media alike recently the strength of the Gators might very well be their pair of 5-star 6’5” ball handlers in Andrew Nembhard and Tre Mann. Modern basketball games are often won by whichever team has the better ball handlers and between these two guards that play a contrasting but complimentary style the Gators should be in excellent shape. Both had lots to say on media day and for Nembhard the questions started with what happened to his leg when he went down with a scary injury playing for Team Canada over the summer. Luckily, it wasn’t as bad as it was once thought to be.
“It was just a nerve I hit in my leg, nothing too serious.”
That unfortunate scenario definitely wasn’t enough to sour what seemed to be a great few weeks for him competing against some of the best international teams from around the globe.
“It was a great experience, I got to learn a lot from the older guys. Even though I didn’t really play that much I got to get better just from watching how those guys play and how those guys carry themselves.”
Playing for Team Canada was the cherry on top of what was a busy offseason as he started the spring by working out with NBA teams as he tested the draft waters.
“It was a great process, I got some really good feedback. I think I did real well in a lot of my workouts. After the process I just got together with my family and was really excited about the idea of coming back for another year and doing much better then we did last year.”
In coming back one of the expectations for Nembhard is that he’ll lead a faster paced offense that will play in transition a lot more than they did a year ago. That’s something he definitely sees happening.
“I can see us with the depth we have to play faster than we did last year and get out and run with all the athletes we’ve got. I think that would be exciting basketball for us to play.”
One player who would love to play in an up-tempo style is Tre Mann, a local product who the coaching staff was ecstatic to land.
“I always have been a Gator fan my whole life growing up in Gainesville and when I got the offer they really took it serious like they were texting me every day, not only was an assistant coach texting me every day but Coach White was calling me.”
The Gators may have had an advantage being the hometown school but with the skill and length of Mann he could went just about anywhere in the country. What may have separated Coach White from all the other coaches after Mann was a trait he shared with Mann’s high school coach.
“I just felt like it was a great fit because I succeeded in high school and Coach White just reminded me a lot of my high school coach. They both want to win and they’re both kind of crazy, but they both want to win.”
When asked for an example of White’s craziness Mann offered:
“Coach White, the first week we got here, he was laying out in the rain, laying on a bench in the rain just cause he got done running.”
Since he grew up a Gators fan it was a special moment when Mann finally got to don the orange and blue.
“It was crazy. It was me, Noah, and Scottie and when I saw my last name on it was unreal… it was an unreal moment. Noah said ‘the same thing happened to me last year…’ When I saw it I couldn’t stop smiling when I put it on it felt good, it felt like home.”
On the court Mann offers something that the Gators haven’t had a lot of as of late and that’s the ability to get his own shot. High school competition was no match for Mann’s individual scoring ability but what he’s looking to do in college is a bit different.
“Hopefully a lot of playmaking, I just want to make plays. I make shots but I just want to show that I have different parts of my game that can help teams win. Here, if they need me to score I’ll score and if they need me to get certain players the ball that’s what I’m gonna do. I just want to show that I have different parts of my game and I’ll do anything to win.”
In preparing for his freshman season Mann has been getting personal with strength and conditioning coach Preston Greene who has been helping him reshape his body.
“I’ve gotten a lot stronger. I came in at 169 and I was frail, I had never lifted weights… I went up a little bit each week and now I’m getting extra sessions in. I’ll come in on a day off and lift…I know that you’ve got to be stronger playing in the SEC and that’s what I’m trying to do.”
Florida has a gauntlet of a non-conference schedule and things won’t get any easier when they enter SEC play as the league is looking like one of the strongest in the country once again. Fortunately, that isn’t going to bother Mann.
“I’ve heard a lot about the SEC and that’s one of the reasons I came, they said it’s one of the tougher places to play and guys are a lot stronger and bigger and faster and stuff so I just like a challenge so I came to compete.”