Florida Gator Basketball Preview

Last year, the Florida Gators entered the season with lowered expectations after having lost “the big 3” Matt Walsh, David Lee and Anthony Roberson. Most analysts assumed that it would be a rebuilding year in Gainesville and that the Gators would struggle to make the NCAA Tournament. In fact, Miami led the state’s teams in votes in the initial AP Top 25 poll.

A year later the Gators are defending national champions and enter the season ranked #1 in the nation. This year, the whole world will be shooting at the Gators, but Florida boosts a superior squad to a year ago and should be even better than last year. As the first defending champion to return all five starters since UNLV in 1990, the Gators are poised to make another at the title.

Unlike last season, the Gators have the highest possible expectations to fill. Yet they remain focused. " I think alot of us still have a chip on our shoulder," says key reserve Chris Richard. How focused are the Gators? Don't kid yourself: Corey Brewer, Al Horford and Joakim Noah all came back to add some more hardware.

Brewer is one of the best defensive players in the nation. He combines rare athleticism with good size (for a swingman), and has an amazing first step when he breaks down defenders off the dribble.

Noah as we all know is the emotional leader of this team and has unmatched intensity, but he may not be the best big man on the team. Al Horford is a better rebounder than Noah and has improved his shooting around the basket during the offseason.

Taurean Green does not get enough credit for leading the team to a championship from the point guard spot. Green has improved his outside shooting this offseason and considering he was already a 13ppg scorer last year, the rest of the SEC ought to be running for cover.

Lee Humphrey continues to be one of the best outside shooting threats anywhere in the nation, but last season when Humphrey went down in the middle of the SEC season and that cost the Gators several winnable games until he returned. This year Walter Hodge must improve his outside shooting off the bench, and Freshman Dan Werner who committed to Florida after Herb Sendek left NC State could be the next great Gator combo player.

The Gators will win the SEC this year and contend for another national title. Will they repeat? If any team can repeat in the modern era of parity and early departures it's this solid Gator team, but it is entirely possible the Gators will not get as favorable a draw in the NCAAs as they got last season. In addition, the team remains devoid of serious depth which helps in some ways and hurts in others.

Florida is one of the top two teams in the nation. The other squad that is clearly head and shoulders above the rest of the country is North Carolina, who goes about 11 deep. One of the most interesting aspect of a potential UF-UNC national title game will be a test as to whether a seven deep team filled with great players can beat an 11 deep squad filled with above average players.

Projected Starters:

G Taurean Green/Jr (Fort Lauderdale)
G Lee Humphrey/Sr (Maryville, TN )
G/F Corey Brewer/Jr (Portland, TN )
F Joakim Noah/Jr (New York, NY )
C Al Horford/Jr (Dominican Republic)

Key Reserves:

G Walter Hodge/So (Guaynabo, PR )
F Chris Richard/Sr (Lakeland)
G/F Dan Werner/Fr (Middletown, NJ )
F Jon Mitchell/Fr (Mount Vernon, NY)
F Marrese Speights/Fr (St Petersburg)



SUNDAY: FLORIDA STATE AND MIAMI PREVIEWS
TUESDAY: THE REST OF THE ACC AND SEC