HOOVER, Ala. — Florida freshman guard Bradley Beal was the Gatorade national high school basketball player of the year and a McDonald’s All-American at St. Louis Chaminade Prep, but Gators Coach Billy Donovan had to encourage him to shoot more during a recent practice.
“I actually have been really, really amazed at his humility,”Donovan said this week at SEC media day. “I had a situation with him in practice where he missed a jump shot and there was a long rebound. It was a loose ball and it got thrown right back to him, and he was wide open, but he made an extra pass.
“I said, ‘You need to shoot the ball, you’re wide open.’ He said to me, ‘Coach, I don’t want those guys to think I’m selfish.’
“That, to me, gives you an idea of what kind of kid he is.”
Beal, who averaged 32.4 points last season, is part of a loaded Florida back court that Athlon’s magazine rates as the nation’s best. The group is also the main reason the Gators were ranked No. 8 in The Associated Press’ preseason Top 25 poll released Friday.
“I don’t know if we have the best backcourt in the country or not,” Donovan said. “I think we have some very, very gifted players.”
Senior guard Erving Walker and junior guard Kenny Boynton were the Gators’ leading scorers last season when they helped Florida reach the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight before losing to Butler in overtime. Walker averaged 14.6 points and Boynton 14.2.
Now Beal and junior guard Mike Rosario have been added to the mix. Rosario averaged 16.2 points as a freshman and 16.7 points as a sophomore at Rutgers before transferring to Floridaand redshirting last season.
“Everybody is wondering if there are enough basketballs for all of us, but we don’t really focus on that,” Walker said. “We just push each other every day and try and bring out the best in each other.”
Donovan said he has discussed with his guards about how they’ll react if they don’t score many points in a victory while their backcourt matesscore a lot.
“Are you going to play the game with what the game dictates?” Donovan said. “We’ve talked a lot about that. They’re trying to play that way.”
It’s possible that in some games Donovan with go with a four-guard lineup to accentuate his team’s strength on the perimeter. Scoring inside may be tough after the loss of last season’s starting front court of Chandler Parsons, the SEC Player of the Year, along with Vernon Macklin and Alex Tyus.
Sophomore Patric Young and junior Erik Murphy are the Gators’ top big men, but they averaged a combined 7.7 points last season.
“How much we might play four guards will be interesting,” Donovan said. “ I think a lot’s going to depend on how well we can rebound.”
Walker, 5-8, said he believes a four-guard lineup could benefit the Gators.
“We’d press a lot and try to create mismatches - like a power forward guarding a guard - and create steals, ” Walker said. “We’d have to scrape and battle to get rebounds.”
Beal, 6-3, could give the Gators a strong rebounder for a guard.
“He’s very mature for a freshman,” Walker said. “His jump shot is real pretty, andhe’s athletic and can cause a lot of havoc on defense. Even though he’s a freshman, he makes the right plays, the right passes, at the right times.”
Donovan said it’s hard to know how quickly a freshman will adjust to playing in college until practices start.
“Does he understand what you’re teaching? Does he remember things?” Donovan said. “Bradley Beal’s really about as good as I’ve had since I’ve been at Florida in terms of basketball IQ.”
The talent and depth at guard have the Gators among the top 10 nationally in most preseason polls.
“It’s nice, but it doesn’t really mean anything right now to us,” Walker said. “We haven’t stepped on the court and proved anything yet.”
Next: Kentucky
At a glance
LAST SEASON 29-8, 13-3 SEC COACH Billy Donovan (360-147 in 14 seasons at Florida, 395-167 overall in 16 seasons) KEY RETURNEES G Erving Walker, G Kenny Boynton, F Patric Young KEY NEWCOMERS G Bradley Beal, F Walter Pitchford KEY LOSSES F Chandler Parsons, F Vernon Macklin, F Alex Tyus PROJECTED SEC FINISH Third
Sports, Pages 32 on 10/29/2011