Gators men’s basketball fans are under a month away from seeing the SEC reigning regular-season champions back in action. With guard Denzel Aberdeen officially cleared to play, Florida is one step closer to preparing at full strength for the 2026-27 season.
That preparation is made easier with much of last season’s core returning, including four of the five starters from a season ago in guard Boogie Fland and the All-SEC Big 3 frontcourt of Thomas Haugh, Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu.
Haugh, the senior forward who was All-America and first-team All-SEC last season, believes continuity says something about what the program has built in the coach Todd Golden era.
“For our core group to stick around, and even the rotational players to stick around, it shows something special is happening here,” Haugh said Thursday.
One of those rotational players who stayed is senior guard Urban Klavzar, who averaged 9.6 points a game last season by shooting 44.4% from the field and an impressive 40.6% from beyond the arc.
Klavzar is still shooting lights out in practice, according to Haugh, but his defense also improved. Haugh added Klavzar’s increased speed and ability to stand his ground make him more fluid and less likely to be a defensive target.
For the players who stayed, their roles on the team might look different come November, specifically in the frontcourt.
Last season, along with Chinyelu, Micah Handlogten functioned as the second post. With Handlogten transferring to Ole Miss, the question was raised about who would fill in as that next option.
Golden plans to rotate Condon and Haugh at the four and the five, which worked well for the Gators two seasons ago. That leaves the small forward position up for grabs, something Golden said will create plenty of competition.
He named Isaiah Brown as one of these players who has the opportunity to “carve out” a larger role on the team. Brown took a leap last season, averaging 5.5 points a game compared to 1.9 points the season before. His offensive progression led to an increase in minutes, going from 3.7 in 2025 to 13.3 minutes in 2026.
He and other players will want to be the next person up.
“There is plenty of playing time available,” Golden said. “There’s opportunity available for some guys who are going to step up and grab it.”
With the small forward position and other spots on the team up for grabs, the competition has already started during practice. But Haugh is ready for that competition to end. He wants to see how the team stacks up against someone other than his teammates.
“I’m tired of playing these dudes,” he joked. “I’m ready to go play somebody else.”
The Gators will get that opportunity when they play an exhibition against Baylor at 2 p.m. Oct. 18 in Jacksonville. The Gators are 1-3 all-time against the Bears, last beating them in 2018. Baylor finished last season 17-17, with a 6-12 conference record, finishing 13th in the Big 12.
The regular season for UF starts Nov. 2 in Tampa against Miami. Golden already anticipates a competitive game, but for Haugh, the game he’s circling is Duke.
Last Dec. 2, the Gators failed to complete a 15-point comeback in the second half and fell to the Blue Devils, 67-66, after an unguarded 3-pointer from Isaiah Evans stunned the Gators. The loss in Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C., remains on Haugh’s mind to this day.
“We should have won that game,” he said Thursday, restating the same feeling he expressed after last year’s loss.
Florida is projected as the No. 1-ranked team in the country when the Associated Press Preseason Poll is released mid-October.
For Golden, his only concern is creating a culture with high expectations, where being the top-ranked team and national champions is the norm.
“We’re going to take it,” Haugh said. “We’re made for these moments … Whether we’re [ranked] one, two, three, four, whatever, we’re going to go out there and play our style of ball.”
Note: The Big 3 and Golden will again represent Florida at SEC Basketball Tipoff for the second straight season on Oct. 13-14 in Birmingham, Alabama. The Gators are scheduled to appear the morning of Oct. 14, with coverage on the SEC Network from 11:20-11:35 a.m. ET.
