Florida basketball’s disappointing finish last season left a bad taste in the mouth, which led to the return of the trio of Thomas Haugh, Alex Condon, and Rueben Chinyelu as the preseason favorites to cut down the nets yet again.
The tradition continues! It’s another year of our countdown of the top 100 preseason teams in college basketball until the start of the season. Each day, we will reveal the next team until we reach the team slotted at number one. Up next: Florida basketball.
After winning the SEC regular season title for a second straight season, things seemed to go downhill from there, finishing off the season with losses in the SEC tournament and in the Round of 32 to Iowa, cutting its season short.
Florida will be the preseason favorite in the SEC for a second straight season and has all the pressure on its side after this past season and what has happened in the offseason, with the return of most of its production and rotation from last year.
The Gators struggled from deep this past season, and hopes are that the return of Denzel Aberdeen to the team, who currently has an injunction to play with the team for the season, but that could obviously change given the landscape of college athletics in 2026.
Head coach: Todd Golden (8th season overall, 5th at Florida)
2025-26 record: 27-8 (16-2)
2026 postseason finish: Lost to Iowa (73-72) in second round of NCAA Tournament
Notable departures:
- Xaivian Lee (11.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 4.2 APG)
- Urban Klavzar (9.6 PPG, 1.5 RPG, 1.3 APG)
- Isaiah Brown (5.5 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 0.6 APG)
- Micah Handlogten (4.1 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 0.7 APG)
Notable non-conference games:
- vs. Miami (Nov. 2) – Tampa, FL
- at Florida State (Nov. 10)
- vs. Notre Dame (Nov. 17) – Players Era 16
- vs. Houston/Rutgers (Nov. 18) – Players Era 16
- vs. TBD (Nov. 19) – Players Era 16
- vs. Duke (Dec. 1)
- vs. Georgia Tech (Dec. 12) – Orlando, FL
- vs. Grand Canyon (Dec. 18) – Jacksonville, FL
Projected Rotation
PG: Boogie Fland (6-3, 190, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 11.6 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.7 SPG
SG: Denzel Aberdeen (6-5, 190, 5th.)
2025-26 stats: 13.5 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 3.4 APG, 36.3 3P% (Kentucky)
SF: Thomas Haugh (6-9, 215, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 17.1 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 2.1 APG, 1.1 SPG
PF: Alex Condon (7″0, 236, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 15.1 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 3.6 APG, 55.6 FG%
C: Rueben Chinyelu (6-10, 265, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 10.9 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 0.7 APG, 58.4 FG%
6:Urban Klavzar (6-1, 185, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 9.6 PPG, 1.5 RPG, 1.3 APG, 40.6 3P%
7: CJ Ingram II (6-6, 205, So.)
2025-26 stats: 2.2 PPG, 0.9 RPG, 0.4 APG
21 Games played
8: Domen Petrovic (6-9, 230, Jr.)
Averaged 16.9 PPG, 6.8 RPG, and 3.6 APG in Slovenia
9: Alex Lloyd (6-3, 185, So.)
247Sports Composite No. 42 ranked recruit (2025)
10: Isaiah Brown (6-4, 210, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 5.5 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 0.6 APG, 34.6 3P%
Florida basketball team MVP: Thomas Haugh
Florida’s loss to Iowa left a bad taste for Thomas Haugh, a projected top-15 pick in this past draft, which was very stacked. Haugh made the decision as a lifelong Gator fan to return to school for one more season and will still be a projected first-rounder in this upcoming draft.
Haugh did it all for the Gators this past season as the leading scorer and was very good on the wing as a three-level scorer, getting to his spots on the floor and doing it on the defensive end as well.
Haugh comes into this season as one of the favorites for the Wooden Award and will be in contention for it all season, but it will definitely come down to being able to take a jump in the stat sheet despite the stacked roster.
One of the problems for this Gators team was the inconsistency from deep, and at just 32%, even at not a high volume, it is still not enough for Haugh, and I expect him to be anywhere from 35-40 percent by the end of this season to prove to the scouts that he is a big threat from downtown.
It was hard to name an MVP for this team, but Haugh seems to be that guy in the big games to put the team on his back.
Florida basketball make-or-break player: Boogie Fland
Florida’s guard play a season ago was its demise and the reason it failed to reach the second weekend in March. Whether it was the bad shooting nights from deep or even the turnovers, it could not be consistent enough when it mattered most.
Boogie Fland had a decent season, but was just not a consistent enough of a threat to scare teams from packing it in the painted area.
If the Gators are going to be dominant again like they were in the 2024-25 season, Fland needs to cut down on turnovers and get his assist numbers up to be that lead guard he was at Arkansas in his freshman campaign.
A 24% 3 point percentage is not going to cut it in the SEC, and that needs to improve drastically this season for Florida to cut down the nets in April, and that is why Fland is so important, because he is the difference between a first-weekend exit again or being the last team standing.
Key statistic: Rebound margin
This past season, the Gators had a huge advantage on the glass and averaged 14.7 in the rebound margin over the course of the season against opponents, leading the country.
When you are winning the rebound battle by that much on average throughout the season, you will tire your opponent out, limit transition opportunities for the opponent, and have more opportunities for your own transition game to get going.
What also helps the rebound margin is having the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year anchoring your front line down low, with Chinyelu blocking shots and being a brick wall, not letting anything by, which creates even more rebounding chances.
Florida Basketball 2026-27 projections
Projected conference finish: 1st in the SEC
Projected postseason ceiling: National Champions