5 offseason storylines to watch with Florida men's basketball

Edgar Thompson, Orlando Sentinel on Apr 10, 2025

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The afterglow of Florida’s national championship run won’t fade for some time.

The offseason also has arrived, along with plenty of storylines for coach Todd Golden.

The price of Golden’s success

UF athletic director Scott Stricklin has rewarded national championship-winning coaches 10-year deals and nice raises. Golden is due a sizable one.

Golden agreed to a two-year contract extension through 2030 with a $1 million pay bump after last year’s 24-win season, leaving his salary at $3.6 million entering the NCAA Tournament — or 34th nationally. Expect the 39-year-old to enter the top-10 soon enough, where Alabama’s Nate Oats’ $5.018 million salary is the cutoff.

Tennessee’s Rick Barnes sits No. 7 at $5.8 million, just behind Auburn’s Bruce Pearl ($5,958,852). Barnes has more than 700 wins and Pearl more than 800. Neither, though, has won a national championship, while Golden was 4-1 combined against the two this season, culminating with a 79-73 win the in the Final Four against Pearl’s Tigers.

Reshuffling his lieutenants

Kevin Hovde is off to Columbia and John Andrzejek to Campbell to become head coaches, leaving Golden without two men who effectively served as coordinators on offense (Hovde) and defense (Andrzejek).

Golden is expected to promote Jonathan Safir into Andrzejek’s role after three years as director of basketball strategy and analytics and hire from the outside to replace Hovde, who had been with Golden since 2011 when the two were at Columbia under Kyle Smith.

These will be big shoes to fill, given the Gators finished second in offensive efficiency and sixth in defensive efficiency, according to stats guru Ken Pomeroy. After ranking 94th last season, the big jump was made defensively during Andrzejek’s second season.

Walt Clayton Jr.’s draft stock

The All-American guard had to catch the eye NBA teams in need of a shotmaker, especially in the clutch. Clayton entered the Big Dance considered a second-round pick, at best, but his value soared during the three-week event.

The 6-foot-3, 195-pound Lake Wales native has incredible range and skill, but does not have shooting guard size. He is not a true point guard, either, and can be turnover prone, though he did have seven assists against three giveaways during the national title game. Another knock has been Clayton’s defense, but his final play as a Gator was a defensive stop on the Cougars’ final possession.

Still, Clayton has an it factor, a sense for moment and is a winner, three qualities every team covets.

Transfer portal approach

The window for transferring began March 24, or the day after the Gators’ 77-75 come-from-behind win against UConn sent them the Sweet 16 a day later in San Francisco.

Because of the timing, Golden focused on winning a national championship while potential transfer candidates pursued opportunities. The past two offseasons were fruitful in the portal, highlighted by the arrival Clayton in 2023 and Alijah Martin in ’24.

Golden has a national title to sell, but potentially few candidates based on the NCAA’s questionable timetable.

The Joakim Jump

UF legend Joakim Noah’s Year 2 improvement is the program’s gold standard and spurred the 2005-06 Gators to a national title. Sophomore sixth man Tommy Haugh did a pretty nice impersonation, evolving from a role player to a stalwart to a star during the course of the season.

A good candidate for 2025-26 could be sophomore Rueben Chinyelu, a strong rebounder who’s offensive game around the basket gradually improved. Improved defense with less fouling, along with some rim protection would further round out his game.