With the Gators still searching for an impact ball handling guard an interesting name has emerged that they are making a late push for.
Zyon Pullin from UC Riverside was a fairly late addition to the portal after playing four years for the Highlanders, making him a graduate transfer with one year to play. Originally from Pleasant Hill, California, Pullin wasn’t heavily recruited out of high school and committed to UC Riverside where he made an immediate impact averaging 9.3 points and 4.1 assists as a freshman. Since then, he has been on a steady rise.
As a sophomore, Pullin averaged 15.5 points and 5.7 assists and then increased his production even more as a junior, elevating his numbers to 16.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 6.4 rebounds per game. Those are outstanding numbers, but Pullin had one more jump in him.
Last year as a senior, Pullin took his game to yet another level–averaging 21.6 points, 5.0 assists, and 6.2 rebounds per game while knocking down 39% of his three-pointers. His massive production led the Highlanders, who used to live perennially at the bottom of the Big West, to a third place finish in the league. After four years of loyal service he entered the transfer portal and will look to prove his skills at the highest level of the sport. According to sources the Gators are trying to get some traction with Pullin and get him on a visit to Gainesville which is no surprise given that Pullin is one of the top guards remaining.
When it comes to how well his game would translate to the high-major level you can start with the fact that he’s big for the point guard position at 6’4” and 194 pounds, and while he wouldn’t be a top athlete in the SEC that size would help him on both ends of the floor. His consistent arc of improvement throughout his college career could also suggest he still has another level to get to–something you don’t always see with graduate transfers. Earlier in the season he had excellent performances against Oregon and Colorado with 21 and 17 point games, though he was somewhat kept in check by Creighton who limited him to 8 points and 2 assists.
Most of what Pullin does offensively is out of pick and roll and isolation and he was able to get to the rim at will at the Big West level. Right now the Gators lack a lot of ball handlers that can put this type of constant downhill pressure on the paint so you can see why they’d love Pullin to ease the load of Riley Kugel and possibly Walter Clayton. Pullin also has the size to play the wing, though he is definitely at his best with the ball in his hands as a primary initiator. His 39% three-point stroke is something that will jump off the page, but it could be a bit misleading. Pullin can be a reluctant shooter and he only had 64 attempts this past season, and as a junior he only shot 33% on barely over a single attempt per game. This means he’s certainly not going to get left alone behind the arc to shoot wide open attempts, but he’s not the kind of lethal floor spacer that would command maximum gravity and defensive attention away from Florida’s other scorers.
There could be a bit of a connection that helps the Gators with this recruitment as Pullin played under an excellent coach at UC Riverside in Mike Magpayo. Magpayo and Todd Golden worked together at Columbia as assistants back in the early 2010’s and have remained close friends. There is no ill-will from UC Riverside at Pullin leaving after giving them four years of incredible basketball and they are looking to help him find an excellent next home.
Right now there isn’t a known favorite for Pullin who has been quiet about his recruitment and hasn’t made much information known in the way of visits. The Gators will look to get him on a plane to Gainesville where they will be confident in their ability to make a solid pitch and maybe lock him down.