Gators: No 5-stars but Golden's roster fits perfectly together

Alex Condon (21) wasn't a 5-star recruit but he plays like one (UAA Photo)

SAN FRANCISCO – Just because there are no 5-star recruits on the Florida roster doesn’t mean Todd Golden is opposed to signing them. The number of stars assigned by recruiting services isn’t nearly as important to Golden as finding guys who fit the culture he has spent three years carefully constructing.

“In regards to five stars and things like that, we’re going to recruit guys that we feel are good fits for our program,” Golden said Friday afternoon before the Gators got in their final practice session before their Saturday Elite Eight matchup with Texas Tech (6:09 p.m.) with the winner advancing to the Final Four in San Antonio. “It they’re five stars that want to be a part of what we’re doing, great. If not, we’ll continue to find Tommy Haughs and Alex Condons and go get guys that compete their tails off and are really prideful about wearing the Florida jersey and doing it that way and live with the results.”

Haugh and Condon were not highly recruited. Haugh was all set to go to Richmond before Golden became the Florida coach. Haugh changed his commitment to Florida when Golden hired Kevin Hovde off the Richmond staff. Condon was discovered at an NBA Global event. Golden was there to recruit Nigerian Rueben Chinyelu, who signed with Washington State and Kyle Smith, one of Golden’s mentors. It was while scouting Chinyelu that Golden discovered Condon.

Golden was selling opportunity and that was good enough for both Condon and Haugh.

“He [Golden] did promise a level of minutes my freshman year,” Condon said, describing the recruiting process that led him to choose Florida. “I think just the whole coaching staff, how welcoming they were. I think another reason I came to Florida was Coach [Carlin] Hartman and how accepting he was of all the bigs, and just seeing guys like Colin Castleton, who excelled in the program before, helped me make my decision easy.”

Like Condon, Haugh was practically unknown before the Gators signed him.

“We both weren’t heavily recruited out of high school,” Haugh said. “He [Golden] kind of went against the grain and picked us out we’ll always have an appreciation for Coach.”

Credit has to be given to Golden for being an extraordinary evaluator of talent. Both Condon and Haugh got their minutes off the bench as freshmen last season when they backed up Tyrese Samuel and Micah Handlogten. Condon played in all 36 games with one start, the NCAA Tournament game with Colorado after Handlogten fractured his leg in the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship game. He averaged 7.7 points and 6.4 rebounds while averaging 20.3 minutes per game. Haugh also played in all 36 games. He started twice while averaging 3.9 points, 3.7 rebounds in 14.8 minutes per game.

A year later, both have blossomed. Condon, who has been a fixture in the starting lineup all season, missed three games when he suffered a sprained ankle at Mississippi State. He made third team All-SEC averaging 10.9 points and a team high 7.7 rebounds. Haugh, who many believe should have been SEC Sixth Man of the Year, came on strong when Condon was injured, starting five games. His season averages are 9.5 points and 6.0 rebounds.

Condon and Haugh are unique in that they are two of the best passing big men in the SEC and perhaps the nation. Haugh has 80 assists, third best on the team, while Condon is right behind at 78.

Unselfishness in the Florida program isn’t just about passing the ball to the open man. It is about fitting in with the rest of the team. Denzel Aberdeen was a high school recruit who elected to stick with the Gators when Mike White left for Georgia and Golden was hired. Will Richard transferred in from Belmont. Then came Haugh and Condon and the nucleus of a roster was formed.

After year one, Golden brought in Walter Clayton Jr., who is a consensus first team All-American, from Iona in the transfer portal, and Handlogten, who came to UF after a strong freshman year at Marshall. Also brought in from the portal were Samuel (from Seton Hall) and Zyon Pullin (UC-Riverside), who were outstanding in their one-and-done years before moving on to the NBA. Freshman Kajus Kublickas was signed out of Lithuania.

So, heading into year three, Golden had a 7-player foundation for what has become a team that is three wins away from a national championship. The final pieces to the construction of the team were transfers Alijah Martin (from Florida Atlantic), Chinyelu (from Washington State) and Sam Alexis (from Chattanooga) and freshmen Isaiah Brown (from Orlando Christian Prep), Urban Klavzar (from Slovenia) and Viktor Mikic (from Serbia).

None of these were 5-star recruits out of high school.

Golden differentiates his recruiting style by putting plenty of trust in the players already on his roster. Golden and his assistants always have the final word, but they listen carefully to their players when deciding who they wish to sign.

“If it’s guys who have a lot of equity in our program we’re definitely listening to what they have to say,” Golden said. “With what we’re trying to do at Florida, we’re continuing to try to build a program in a time when it’s really hard to do that with all the moving around and all the transfer legislation.”

When Martin entered the transfer portal, he had plenty of options beside the Gators. Two years ago he was the leader of a Florida Atlantic team that made the Final Four. Martin is all about the winning and doing whatever it takes to help the team. He scores, he rebounds, he passes, he plays defense and that’s in addition to being a forceful presence in the locker room.

Before Martin was signed, Golden paid close attention to what Clayton and Richard had to say.

“When we brought in Alijah last year to visit, Will and Walt, they had a big say in regards to whether he was a good fit,” Golden said. “… Guys who have been in our program a number of years definitely have a say in regards to the guys that we bring in, and obviously we’re going to have the final say as a staff. If we feel there is not going to be good synergy between the newcomers and the guys in the locker room, it’s going to be really hard to make it work, and generally we’re going to pass on those guys.”

Of course, Martin fit in perfectly as did Chinyelu, Alexis and the freshmen. Martin and Chinyelu have been starters all year. Alexis was a key contributor until he suffered a serious ankle injury the same game that Condon went down at Mississippi State. When injuries to Clayton and Martin necessitated going deep to the bench, Klavzar came in and has been a contributor in the rotation ever since.

Perhaps the final ingredient to the Gators making it to the Elite Eight was when Handlogten elected to burn his redshirt. When Condon and Alexis went down, the Gators were left with only two big men. That’s when Handlogten elected to burn his redshirt and become an active contributor on the floor. Already one of the team’s emotional leaders, Handlogten provides defense, rebounding and a measure of experience.

Golden saw the potential in this team back in the summer. He knew he had the talent, but began seeing the newfound toughness brought in by Martin, increased leadership from Richard and Clayton, and the kind of depth that nobody in the country can match. When he saw how unselfish these guys are, he knew he had something special on his hands.

“The unselfishness is what I keep going back to that I take a lot of pride in and I know our guys take pride in,” Golden said. “Hopefully we can continue to build that on a year-to-year basis. It's obviously not easy, and I'm not naive to think that we don't have a special group this year. I know we do, but we'll continue to work and make sure we try to replicate that moving forward.”

Saturday vs. Texas Tech

Anticipated starting lineups

FLORIDA (33-4): Alex Condon (6-11, 230, SO); Rueben Chinyelu (6-10, 255, SO); Will Richard (6-4, 206, SR); Alijah Martin (6-2, 195, GR); Walter Clayton Jr. (6-2, 195, SR)

Texas Tech (28-8): Darrion Williams (6-6, 225, JR); JT Toppin (6-9, 225, SO); Kerwin Walton (6-5, 210, SR); Christian Anderson (6-2, 165, FR); Elijah Hawkins (5-11, 160, SR)