Not even its most ardent fan knew Florida before this season. David Lee, a steady senior, had graduated. Matt Walsh and Anthony Roberson, its top two scorers, had fled early, and what remained was a group of callow youth.
One of the youngsters, a sophomore forward named Joakim Noah, had played all of two minutes in the Gators’ two tournament games the previous March. Their point guard, a sophomore named Taurean Green, had yet to start a game and had nearly as many turnovers (51) as assists (69). Their best shooter, a junior named Lee Humphrey, grew up 20 miles from the University of Tennessee but was not recruited by the Vols.
This was a motley crew Gators coach Billy Donovan greeted in October, but he understood what needed to be done.
“We weren’t going to replace the guys we lost with one or two players,” he recalled in December. “So the thing I’ve emphasized with this team is unselfishness. They’ve exceeded my expectations.”
They have kept right on exceeding them while advancing to Monday’s title game with UCLA.
Five things you should know about Florida:
1. The Gators are a team
All of their starters average in double figures, which shows their balance. Their willingness to leave their men and rotate defensively is a sure sign that they trust each other.
But they best manifested their cohesiveness early, back when they were building their season-opening 17-game winning streak.
“The main piece has been their willingness to remain extremely unselfish, their ability not to embrace success,” Donovan said. “I think the hardest thing that happens to a team is, when you get to be 17-0, you can think it’s easy or that you’ve got it all figured out. They really remained humble. They wanted to get better. . . . I would say besides the passion, the unselfishness, playing hard, they’re a very, very attentive group that care about each other a great deal, want to be coached, want information and want to get better.”
The reason for that might be . . .
2. They have the genes
Noah’s father, Yannick, once won the French Open. Green’s father, Sidney, once starred for UNLV and played in the NBA and is now a coach. Center Al Horford’s father, Tito, once starred for the University of Miami and played for the Milwaukee Bucks.
“I think what has happened with [them is], you realize that it’s not all about talent,” Donovan said of the parental influence. “They have seen or they have heard their parents talk to them [about] what it really takes to be successful. Yeah, you have this talent, you have this gift. But there is a lot more to it than just that.”
Still, the most talented Gator might be . . .
3. Corey Brewer
Kentucky coach Tubby Smith has called Brewer the toughest matchup in the SEC, which is why his return to full health has been crucial to the Gators’ run. Back on Jan. 21, in the game Tennessee snapped Florida’s winning streak, Brewer suffered a sprained right ankle, which slowed him considerably in the weeks that followed.
But now he is whole and that makes him a 6-foot-8-inch handful, who can shoot and slash, handle and defend. That last skill makes him an integral part of . . .
4. The Gators’ defense
In the tournament, the Gators have held opponents to 56.6 points per game and limited them to 34.4 percent shooting, to 28.4 percent on three-point attempts. “My philosophy defensively,” Donovan said, “is to try to take teams out of what they practice every single day, whether it be through pressing, through three-quarter-court pressing, through trapping pick-and-rolls, trapping the low post. We try to do thing to disrupt the flow of a game.”
Which leaves. . .
5. A mentor’s advice
When Donovan was offered the Florida job in 1996, he called Rick Pitino, the man he had played for at Providence and worked under at Kentucky before moving on to take over at Marshall. “Coach Pitino told me, `Billy, it’s not a good situation. You don’t need that,'” Donovan recalled. “He felt it was going to take a complete overhaul and I would be better off staying at Marshall.”
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smyslenski@tribune.com
