Second Gators Star Gets a Chance in the NBA

Another star from the Florida Gators 2023-24 men's basketball team signed a contract with an NBA team following the draft.

Florida forward Tyrese Samuel / Jeff Faughender/Courier Journal / USA

Former Florida Gators forward Tyrese Samuel signed an Exhibit-10 deal with the Phoenix Suns on Thursday after going undrafted in this year’s NBA Draft, per DraftExpress’ Jon Chepkevich. 

Samuel had a career year in Gainesville this past season after spending four years with Seton Hall. 

In 2024, he averaged 13.9 points per game and 7.4 rebounds in 36 games for the Gators. This earned him a spot on the AP second-team All-SEC honors. 

Samuel (500) also combined with Walter Clayton Jr. (633) and Zyon Pullin (512) as the first trio in Gators men’s basketball history to score 500 points in a season. 

Additionally, he and Micah Handlogten became the first Florida duo to hit the century mark in offensive rebounds when the pair grabbed 102 and 108 offensive rebounds respectively last season. 

One of Samuel’s best performances of the 2023-24 campaign came against the Missouri Tigers when he dropped an impressive 28 points and 10 rebounds in a win.

Like his former teammate Zyon Pullin, who signed with the Miami Heat on Thursday, Samuel would have preferred to hear his name called during the NBA draft. Nevertheless, this is still a great opportunity for him to showcase his abilities and give the Suns a reason to convert his contract into a two-way or guaranteed deal 

Though it won’t be easy. 

He will have to beat out 2024 Suns’ newcomers Osasere Ighodaro and Ryan Dunn, along with the other big men on the current Phoenix roster. 

The most likely route for Samuel to make the team will initially be through a two-way contract if the Suns have any spots available at the beginning of the season. 

This is because of how the Exhibit-10 contract is set up. 

According to Eric Pincus of the Sports Business Classroom, “This contract allows a franchise to convert a player (specifically on a non-guaranteed one-year minimum) to a two-way contract. Teams will also typically sign several players each offseason to Exhibit 10s.”

If the Suns choose not to extend Samuel a two-way contract, that doesn’t necessarily mean his tenure with the team will be complete. Samuel could re-sign with the organization and join their G-League affiliate if he is waived and clears the waivers before the season begins.