Projected Starting Lineup
G – Jai Lucas 5-11 So. (30.1 MPG, 8.5 PPG, 2.2 APG)
G – Walter Hodge 6-0 Sr. (30.6 MPG, 10.4 PPG, 2.9 APG)
G – Nick Calathes 6-6 So. (32.6 MPG, 15.3 PPG, 6.1 APG)
F – Dan Werner 6-7 Jr. (27.2 MPG, 9.1 PPG, 6.4 RPG)
F – Chandler Parsons 6-9 So. (20.7 MPG, 8.1 PPG, 4.0 RPG)

Impact Bench Players
G – Erving Walker 5-8 Fr. (3-Star Prospect)
F – Adam Allen 6-8 So. (10.4 MPG, 4.0 PPG, 0.8 RPG)
F – Alex Tyus 6-8 So. (12.7 MPG, 4.3 PPG, 2.6 RPG)

Guards
Florida will likely go with a three guard attack for its starters again as they return Jai Lucas, Walter Hodge, and Nick Calathes. It’s a solid trio and all of them can play the point – even the 6-6 Calathes as evidenced by his six assists per game last season. There’s no question that he’s the best player on the team, as besides being a great passer, he’s a solid defender as well. Lucas had a decent year for a freshman, and he’s a deadly accurate deep shooter, so you’d like to see him get more involved in that regard. The team will also rely on Hodge’s leadership, as he’s the only senior on the team and was part of the two Florida national championship teams. Coming off the bench to run the point will likely be freshman Erving Walker. He’d probably be a higher ranked prospect if he wasn’t so small, but he’s known for his ability to do whatever it takes to help the team.


Forwards
Florida should be plenty deep at the forward position. Although they did lose Marreese Speights to the NBA and Jonathan Mitchell, who transferred, they return everyone else and bring in a handful of 4-star recruits as well. This team would be that much better had they returned Speights, but likely starters Dan Werner and Chandler Parsons both logged plenty of minutes last season. Werner’s a surprisingly good rebounder for someone who’s only 6-7, and Parsons is a smart player who’s ready for a starting spot. The main guys off the bench are likely to be Adam Allen and Alex Tyus, as they both played some time last season. They will both be pretty solid by the time they are seniors, and for now, they’re solid bench guys. However, Florida does have four 4-star freshman recruits this year, so if Allen or Tyus falter, you can be sure that we will be seeing a lot of Eloy Vargas and Ray Shipman.

Final Thoughts
This is probably one of the deepest teams in the country as they realistically go 12 deep. One of the biggest knocks on Billy Donovan teams is that they don’t play great defense. That’s the main area of concern because there’s no question that they have the talent offensively to be one of the better teams in the country. With all the big guys they have, post play should be excellent. However, Calathes and Hodge only shot 36% on a whopping 308 3-point attempts so they need to improve or cut down on the number of shots they take from out there. Interior defense is also an area that they need to work on, although you could argue that I’m nitpicking a bit. All in all, the Gators are the class of the SEC, and could easily be a top 10 team if all goes well.

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