Throughout the year we have been doing Q&A articles for our subscribers here at Gator Country, and since Florida has finished up the roster for the 2023-24 season and we’ve entered the dog days of the summer, it’s time for another one!
If you haven’t already read the first two instalments of the series you can read part one here, and part two here.
All questions have been submitted by our subscribers at Gator Country, so if you’d like to ask a question and have it answered you can join today!
Let’s begin.
407king: Do you think this year’s team will be a better passing team than last year’s team?
My first instinct upon reading this question is to give a half-joking “well, it probably couldn’t be a much worse passing team,” though I have to say that when I reviewed the numbers that the Gators weren’t quite as bad as I thought they were from an assist standpoint–ranking 224th in the country in assists divided by made field goals. The eye test was definitely that last year’s roster wasn’t a particularly good passing team, and no one was able to put up a respectable assist number or assist rate, though part of that was an offense that struggled mightily overall. I have mentioned on several occasions that I thought Florida’s offensive system last season was poor, and the results kind of speak for themselves on this matter. I do think the Gators had players on the roster who were willing passers, in fact, I think a lot of guys were happier to pass the ball than shoot, but the offense certainly didn’t allow for much quality playmaking.
Zyon Pullin is a solid passer who finished 111th in the country in assist rate last year. I don’t think he’s an elite passer (though his assist rate is excellent), but I think he’s really solid, and knows how to make good reads within a system and that was perfectly on display for a very efficient UC Riverside scoring attack. Walter Clayton is a willing passer, though not someone I would call an elite playmaker or someone who makes a lot of high level reads.
Perhaps the biggest leap in playmaking could be Riley Kugel who I’m told is making passing and shot creation for his teammates a priority this year as he tries to showcase his lead guard ability. Kugel creates a lot of pressure on defenses with the threat of his shot making, so if he chooses to be a playmaker he should really increase Florida’s passing ability on the whole.
I don’t think this will be a Florida team that has an Andrew Nembhard or Chris Chiozza level passer, but they’ve got a few more capable passers than last year.
Jcmiller910: What are your thoughts on Coach Golden’s 1st year and what can he do to improve in his 2nd season?
Golden brought a ton of enthusiasm and passion, and he puts in the level of work required to have success at a program like Florida. He also brought a defensive system that maximized most of Florida’s talent, and it resulted in a pretty stout defense the second half of the season. In terms of what he can do to improve, it’s pretty simple–offense. When it came to the offense last year both the process, and results, were poor. I didn’t think the offensive system fit Florida’s talent, and I don’t think it was well executed. When you don’t pick a good system, and it’s not executed well–that’s how you finish 139th in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency metric. Golden and whoever on his staff that’s responsible for the offense need to completely reevaluate what they’re doing on that side of the floor and come up with some fresh ideas for the 2023-24 season and hopefully put these guys in much better positions to try and score.
OklahomaGator: Who do you see replacing Colin Castleton’s leadership on the team?
There are a few guys I think will bring leadership, starting with Riley Kugel who commands the spotlight and wants to be someone that can bring the team together and inspire confidence and intensity.
Someone who will also bring leadership is Yale transfer EJ Jarvis. Jarvis is an extremely impressive individual, as you might expect from a Yale graduate, and he was known for his leadership at Yale. In addition to his intelligence on and off the floor he’s someone who plays the game extremely hard in a “lead by example” type of approach, and he’s a loud communicator who will make sure guys get to where they need to be on the floor.
Zyon Pullin was someone who was a leader for UC Riverside really ever since he was a freshman starting at point guard and he’s got a lot of experience as an offensive quarterback making sure teammates know their responsibilities and how to execute.
Another veteran, Tyrese Samuel, will make his voice heard in the locker room and in practice. He’s got a quiet intensity to him, and following a disappointing season at Seton Hall he came to Florida to win, and he’s going to make sure that everyone is pulling in the right direction to make sure that happens.
Brewski: How’s our sharp-shooters looking? Will we drain more threes this season?
Okay, much like the question about passing earlier, I have the urge to say “well, it can’t be any worse!”
Florida was, of course, 313th in the country in three-point percentage last season and 200th in attempts, so the three-point line was not their friend.
One player that will help turn this around for the Gators is Walter Clayton who was one of the best catch and shoot players in the country last season knocking down over 46% of his catch and shoot threes. Overall he hit 43% from three on over five attempts per game, and that is like a breath of fresh air for a Florida team that was desperate for shooting.
One player that could swing whether this is a good or great shooting team is Zyon Pullin. Pullin shot 38% from three last season–but that number is slightly misleading due to the lack of volume. Pullin took only 68 threes last season, a pretty tiny number by point guard standards. Even Kyle Lofton, about as reluctant as a shooter as there is from the point guard position, took 73 last year. So, Pullin has shown the ability to hit threes when they’re wide open, but that’s about it. With pro aspirations he has been working hard to improve that three-point stroke, but it’s hard not to be a little bit skeptical at this point.
Florida should be a better shooting team, largely due to Walter Clayton entering the mix, but I’m not sure there are a lot of lethal shooters outside of him–though it would be great if Will Richard could replicate his shooting from last season.