Gators Transfer Wing Julian Rishwain Medically Cleared for Full Contact

Gators transfer wing Julian Rishwain is expected to be available for Florida early in the 2023-24 season after being medically cleared for full contact on Tuesday.

Photo: Julian Rishwain; Credit: Zach Goodall 

Todd Golden and the Gators received encouraging news as graduate transfer Julian Rishwain was cleared for full contact by Florida’s medical staff, Chris Harry of FloridaGators.com reported on Tuesday.

Rishwain transferred to Florida from San Francisco this offseason, and is expected to provide the unit with a credible and familiar shooting threat from the perimeter.

“Julian is a guy that played great for us in our tournament season,” Golden told All Gators in September. “Kind of had a tough year last year before getting hurt. But, if he's able to get healthy, will provide a lot of shooting for us and spacing the floor, which is something we couldn't do last year. We just couldn't make shots.

“To have a guy that I coached for two years, I think he shot 41% from three or something over those two years, he’s a proven commodity that can space the floor for us.”

The familiarity between him and Golden played a major role in the decision to play out his final year of collegiate eligibility in Gainesville. He was recruited to USF by Golden after spending a season at Boston College. 

His best two seasons of his career came under the second-year Florida head coach, as Rishwain shot 36.7% as a sophomore and 43% as a junior from three to aid the Dons back to an NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1998 during the 2021-22 season.

Golden’s departure to Florida came immediately following the tournament berth. Under the new regime, Rishwain struggled.

He connected on just 26.9% of his attempts from the floor and 24.3% from three before tearing his ACL, MCL and PCL in his right knee in January.

The Gators were aware of the severity of his injury when targeting him in the portal. They outlined his recovery plan before his commitment, but we’re realistic with his timeline to return to 100% health.

At one point, there were question marks regarding his potential to play in the upcoming campaign. The team explored options of a medical redshirt if that was deemed necessary.

However, since arriving on campus, Rishwain has expedited his rehabilitation track to return to the hardwood, working ahead of schedule. It resulted in him being cleared to fully participate with 13 days until tip-off against Loyola Maryland. 

He is now slated to be available for the Gators at some point during the team’s out-of-conference schedule, marking an important piece to factor into a potentially deep rotation of talent at Golden’s disposal.

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