For those expecting Florida to bring in another big man in the Class of 2011, don’t get your hopes up.
Even with the uncertain status of Florida big men Erik Murphy and Cody Larson, the Gators appear content with its two player 2011 class of McDonald’s All-American guard Bradley Beal and big man Walter Pitchford. Larson and Murphy have been suspended indefinitely following an arrest on third-degree felony charges for allegedly trying to break into a car.
There was some interest in big man Joseph Uchebo, who decommitted from North Carolina State. But according to
ESPN.com, the 6-foot-10, 240-pound Uchebo has narrowed his choices to Kentucky, Florida State and Wake Forest. Uchebo is the last quality big man left on the 2011 recruiting board.
Florida is perhaps saving its scholarships for 2012. The Gators have strong interest in Atlanta-area prospects
Tony Parker and
Brandon Morris. Parker, in particularly, is a bruising 6-foot-9, 250-pound big man in the mold of current Gators center Patric Young.
While Young projects as Florida’s most physical post presence next season, Florida can still get by with Will Yeguete at power forward. Yeguete has outstanding loose ball and rebounding instincts that make up for his lack of traditional size (6-foot-7, 210 pounds) at power forward. But depth would be a concern if Larson and Murphy are suspended for any significant length of time next season.
Other notes:
Alex Tyus has started an NBA pre-draft diary.
Glad to see Matt McCall get a shot as Florida’s third assistant coach.
Here’s a story I wrote on McCall in 2004, my first season on the UF basketball beat, when he was the head student manager for the UF basketball team. After reading the story, you will see that McCall had the ambition back then to become successful in the basketball coaching profession.
