|
Beginning Monday, June 21st,
2004 CHN began unveiling 144 Team previews in 144 Days. CHN ranked the
nations top 144 teams, and is unveiling one per day leading up until the
opening day of the 2004-05 Season.
Bookmark the
144 Teams in 144 Days home page, and check back
each day to see which team is previewed next.
#22 Florida Gators
SEC
2003-04: 20-9, 9-7, 3rd
2003-04 postseason: NCAA
By
Joel Welser
 How long will it take before all
the Gator talent and potential comes together? They’ve underachieved over
and over again the last few seasons, but still here they are as a contender
for the SEC title. New assistant coach Larry Shyatt brings more head
coaching experience and defensive discipline to a team that revels in
individual offensive talent.
Who’s Out: Christian Drejer
left the team to play in Europe in the middle of the SEC schedule. While a
talented player was gone, last years team bonded after Drejer left. Ryan
Appleby and Rashid Al-Kaleem are a couple more players who are departing
early. Neither saw much playing time in Gainesville last year, but could
have seen increased roles this season. Forward Bonell Colas was always a
good option off the bench. As a senior last year he averaged 4.9 points and
3.1 rebounds.
Who’s In: Anthony Roberson,
Matt Walsh and Lee Humphrey have the backcourt starting jobs in hand. The
newcomers need to fill in off the bench. Taurean Green is a true point
guard, but has a knack for scoring from everywhere on the floor. Wing Corey
Brewer is a superior talent who could crack the starting five sooner then
later, if head coach Billy Donovan can find a spot for him. Brewer will run
the floor all day and can put up some big numbers in the scoring column.
Incoming freshmen Cornelius Ingram, Jack Berry and Garrett Tyler aren’t
expected to see many minutes their first year at Florida. The newcomers
won’t be pressed into duty so much in the frontcourt. Joakim Noah and Al
Horford both have the talent to play a lot from day one, but David Lee,
Adrian Moss, Mohamed Abukar and Chris Richard will see most of the playing
time up front. Noah, a 6-11 forward, is very athletic for his size, which
will fit in very well with the Gators style of play. Horford is a solid
defender and rebounder, who should earn some minutes this year.
Who to Watch: Gator fans
were ecstatic when Anthony Roberson announced he was returning to Florida.
The team needs his point guard leadership and tremendous scoring ability.
Roberson averaged 17.9 points and 3.6 assists as a sophomore last year. The
Saginaw, Michigan native is a scorer first, and a darn good one, but can be
a solid distributor when necessary. He’s a good defender, averaging 1.1
steals per outing and can rebound pretty well for a 6-1, 180-pounder. If
Roberson can continue to be a prolific scorer and find the other great
scorers on the team, then this team will be dangerous.
Projected Conference Rank:
A balanced SEC helped Florida earn third place last year with just a 9-7
record. The league appears to be less balanced this year and 9-7 might not
be good enough for third place, but a 4th place finish this year
is plenty good enough for another drip to the NCAA Tournament. There is no
question about the talent on this team, but they’ll have to be more
consistent to compete for the SEC championship.
Projected Post-season
Tournament: NCAA
«
Team #23 ,
Team #21
»
Email Joel Welser:
jwelser_chn@ameritech.net
Chat About CHN's Top #144
Ranking:
http://pub14.ezboard.com/fcollegehoopsnetfrm8
Return to the
144 Teams in 144 Days home page
|
