Florida’s Zyon Pullin has signed a two-way NBA contract with the Miami Heat after going undrafted in the 2024 NBA Draft.
The 6’4, 206-point guard averaged 15.4 points, 4.9 assists, and 3.9 rebounds per game in his lone season with the Gators, earning a 2024 Coaches First-Team All-SEC bid for his efforts in Orange and Blue.
Pullin set Florida’s single-season record with a 3.77 assist-to-turnover ratio, which is also the best mark by an SEC player in the 2000s.
“He’s really, really comfortable and really good at running the team and keeping us in our stuff and finding guys,” Florida head coach Todd Golden said on Pullin midseason. “He’s like the ultimate security blanket out there. He’s going to be able to get us organized and get us into something. He does a good job finding guys. He does a good job of recognizing when things are available…so he’s out there seeing things and playing quarterback for us. ”
Pullin was one of the best offensive players in college basketball, ranking T-8th in the country in offensive rating among players with at least 20% possessions used, according to KenPom. He ranked 2nd amongst point guards, trailing only Mark Sears from Alabama.
“I’d be lying to say we expected him to be a top-three or-four-point guard in America,” Todd Golden said on Pullin. “I’m looking around and I’m not sure there’s many better.”
While Pullin was an elite floor general, he could score too. The point guard didn’t rely heavily on his three-point shot but knocked down 44.9% of his 78 attempts from beyond the arc, ranking 28th in college baseball in three-point percentage in 2023-2024.
Pullin tallied 512 points to become part of the first trio in Florida history to all post 500 points in a season, along with Walter Clayton Jr. (633) and Tyrese Samuel (500). Pullin and Clayton also gave Florida its first backcourt with multiple All-SEC performers since Kenny Boynton, Mike Rosario and Scottie Wilbekin in 2012-13.
Before transferring to Florida, Pullin played four seasons at UC Riverside, where he was a three-time All-Big West honoree, earning first-team recognition in 2022-23, second-team in 2021-22 and honorable mention in 2020-21. Pullin scored 1,312 points in 109 games with 77 starts during in his four seasons at UC Riverside, averaging 12.0 points per game, including 18.3 during 2022-23.
The California native played high school ball at College Park, where he was an All-Bay Area News Group selection.
What the experts are saying on Zyon Pullin
The following analysis and projection is from RotoWire on NBA.com.
Analysis
“Pullin is a ball-screen floor general who likes to get downhill, but who can pull up with confidence from the midrange if his drive gets cut off. He’s an excellent passer and rarely turns the ball over. He drastically improved his shooting as a fifth-year senior, going 35-for-78 (45%) from deep and 161-for-190 (85%) from the charity stripe. The sample size from three isn’t large, but he shot a quality 26-for-66 (39%) the year prior. His release is fairly slow, so defenders often have time to close out. When plays break down, he’s shown the ability to get a bucket in isolation. Pullin is also a smart defender with the physical tools to deal with guards and smaller wings. He’s also not much of a vertical athlete, failing to record a dunk at Florida despite being 6-foot-4. That impacts his finishing ability against NBA-level length.”
Projection
“Pullin should be able to make an impact as a low-mistakes, team-first backup point guard, similar to Tyus Jones or Monte Morris. If he can learn to shoot the three at volume and improve his rim finishing, there’s upside for him to be a game-managing starter. Pullin is a classic floor-raising point guard.”