Todd Golden's Rebuild Coming to Fruition

A strong balance of instant-impact portal additions, under-the-radar high school prospects and year-to-year develop has turned the Florida Gators back into a national contender.

Florida head coach Todd Golden celebrates their win over Tennessee after the Southeastern Conference tournament championship at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, March 16, 2025. / Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Three years and many pieces later, Todd Golden is turning the Florida Gators men’s basketball team back to the program they once were: winning SEC Tournaments and being one of the top seeds in the NCAA Tournament. 

The emergence of Florida as a title contender this season may be a surprise to those outside of the program, but Golden knew what he team could be capable of if a couple of prerequisites were met.

His team just needed time to connect with one another and every single player had to be unselfish. 

“When we constructed this roster, we felt like if all the pieces gelled and were unselfish, we'd have a really good chance,” Golden said after winning his first SEC Tournament title with the Gators.

Well, his hopes have turned into reality. The Gators look as cohesive as any other team in the country and are playing like a team who cares more about the logo on the front rather than the name on the back.

And while many will be more focused on how high the ceiling is for this team, Golden is far more concerned about the floor of this team. 

“But truthfully, for me, it's all about just making sure our floor stays incredibly high,” he said. “If our floor's high, we're going to be able to beat teams we should beat deep.”

Florida having both this type of floor and peak wasn’t an expectation coming into this year, though, and it definitely wasn’t the projection after Golden’s first year with the program. Golden ended his inaugural season with Florida with an overall record of 16-17 and conference record of 9-9. 

“Year one was up and down,” Golden said. 

Unfortunately, but not surprising, for Golden, this didn’t sit well with the Florida faithful. They had sat through many seasons of mediocrity in the years prior to his arrival and were yearning for the program Florida once was. 

To achieve that, the most obvious plan of attack for the Gators head coach was the transfer portal. He needed win-now pieces, and that was the easiest place to find them. 

Golden already brought in a solidified starter in Will Richard from the portal for his first year. He also needed a pair of guards to help run his offense and bigs to bring physicality down low and rebound with tenacity. That’s where Walter Clayton Jr., Zyon Pullin, Tyrese Samuel and Micah Handlogten come into play ahead of Golden's second season.

Todd Golden's first signee, Will Richard has become a staple for the Florida Gators over the past three season. / Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

Having these four joining all in the same offseason provided the Gators the floor for that Golden wanted. This core — along with Richard — oozed experience and talent, two necessary things to win. 

But Clayton Jr., Pullin, Handlogten and Samuel weren’t the only newcomers that offseason. Golden also brought in Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon from the high school ranks to help fill out his roster. 

With the seven aforementioned names, the Gators slowly started creeping their way back into national relevancy. This core led the Gators to their best season since 2016-17 with 24 wins, including victories over No. 10 Kentucky in Rupp Arena, No. 12 Auburn and No. 18 Alabama along the way.

“Year two we were able to add a lot of guys that met that standard,” Golden said. 

The high only lasted so long, though.

Following an impressive run to the SEC Tournament final that included wins over Alabama and Texas A&M, the Gators would drop their next two contests. The first was in this tournament final to Auburn. And even though that didn’t end their season, the next one to Colorado did. 

They dropped their opening game in the NCAA Tournament to the Buffaloes, 102-100, despite a late heroic effort from Clayton Jr. and his 33 points. 

Walter Clayton Jr. has emerged as one of the best players in the country, averaging over 17 points per game while shooting nearly 33 percent from beyond the arc. Florida's first-ever national first-team all-American, Clayton Jr. was also the SEC Tournament MVP. / Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

This loss marked the end of Pullin's and Samuel’s careers with Florida, which meant that Golden needed to go back to the drawing board to fill these two holes. 

Luckily, this time he only needed a few pieces. For the 2024-25 season, he fought the NBA to retain both Clayton Jr. and Richard. The Gators also returned Condon, Haugh and Denzel Aberdeen, who emerged late in the season as a key piece in the rotation. 

“Most importantly between years two and three, we kept a lot of those guys that we thought were really important to build with and around,” Golden said.

So, what was the main focus on his drawing board? Defense. 

Golden felt that the best way to improve this team was to strengthen on that side of the court. With that in mind, Florida acquired Alijah Martin, Rueben Chinyelu and Sam Alexis from the portal, all of whom were known for their defensive prowess, while also developing those in-house. 

The results from these transactions were instantaneous, as well. 

Florida was the 14th-best team in the nation in field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to 39.8% from the field. They also are 11th in the nation in 3-point defense, keeping opponents to under 30% from deep. 

As for individuals, the Gators had three guards record at least 40 steals with Clayton Jr., Richard and Martin. They also had three of their bigs record at least 20 blocks with Haugh, Condon and Chinyelu. Furthermore, Condon and Chinyelu have combined for over 60 blocks on the year.

Rueben Chinyelu is averaging nearly a block per game in his first season with the Florida Gators. / Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

Getting this type of production on defense was important. It’s the reason they say defense wins championships. However, equally as important, Florida’s offense didn’t drop off any levels as they rank 3rd in the nation in scoring, averaging 85.4 points per game. 

And with all of this, the Gators had their best season since 2014, having reached a 30-win season, taking home the SEC Tournament title and earning themselves a one-seed in the NCAA Tournament. 

The Gators next time on the hardwood will be on Friday at 6:50 p.m. against 16-seed Norfolk State. Television coverage can be found on TNT.

Will Richard (5), Thomas Haugh (10), Walter Clayton Jr. (1) and Alijah Martin (15) watch as Rueben Chinyelu shoots a free throw in the Florida Gators' win over Ole Miss. "In my opinion, they're a 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament," Rebels' head coach Chris Beard said. "I don't know if there's a more talented team in college basketball." / Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

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