Also, I assume he won’t be wearing the shoes as a FL player. Cooper Flagg signed with New Balance prior to attending Duke but still had to wear Nike as a Blue Devil.
The Six Million Dollar Man…can the FL coaches rebuild him and make him better than before?..stronger…faster? Will he make a Di-di-di-di-Di sound when he drives to the rim?
Seriously, it’s a great growth challenge for Lee. He has ambitions to get to the NBA, so if he can figure out how to fill in his weak spots and enhance his strengths while getting paid at FL it’s hard to quibble with his decision. And the IL background of the coach might make for more familiarity on both sides about what to expect from one another.
Early report from Florida’s coach is that Lee has been “better than expected” and “an offensive juggernaut.”
Around 19:38 here Lee says that academics at Florida are considerably easier than at Princeton, in terms of both the amount and the difficulty of the work.
Rough first game for Xaivian in a 6pt loss vs. Arizona. Decent looking 14p/6r/5a but ice-cold shooting (5-17). He had his moments but not nearly enough of them. Against physical defense like Arizona (or Yale for that matter), he’s gotta hit his open 3s and he was only 3-11 tonight.
I suspect he’ll have a great season when he gets comfortable, but Arizona clearly wore out the Gators tonight.
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Hde struggled on defense, and was not hitting open 3s, but he got by his man constantly, and was
the best passer on the court.
Xaivian who?
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As someone who is rooting for Lee to succeed… Xaivian is struggling mightily at Florida. He can’t hit a shot against anyone and it’s clearly messing with his head. The Gators have an elite frontcourt and he’s relegated to the 4th or 5th option.
Lee got paid 3-6 million in NIL but his NBA stock is tanking like crazy, which could cost him future millions. Meanwhile, Pierce is sitting out his senior year for what will be a much, much smaller NIL bag. I hope that he realizes that it’s very possible, even probable, that he plays 15mpg off the bench for a top team.
You root for Florida Gator players? Very cool.
Lee had rim-finishing problems while still at Princeton. I suspect his three-point shot will come around this season, though.
Rooting for Lee as well. I did not see last game, but he has looked good with the ball
in previous outings. Has always been a bit streaky as a shooter. They should start to fall soon.
I’m sorry that he struggles. Haven’t been able to watch any games. I hope he comes around. But his three point (and beyond) shot is highly unorthodox technically. Very little elevation, and a very flat arc. He always relied on his incredible quickness to create space for the shot. He is now playing against quicker and taller defenders, which would create less space for him. And even less against NBA defenders.
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I’m also rooting for Lee and do think his shots will start to fall. He’s used to having the ball in his hands and being very versatile. He was very successful in recent years at getting to the rim or shaking the defender for a good look from 3 point range. Now he’s having to adapt to being primarily a catch and shoot guy at a level where defenders close out faster and defend better. I think Golden and he will figure it out.
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Lee had 20 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists against Providence.
I think he is going to be fine.
He has 6Million. He’s been fine for months.
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Up to his old tricks with the ankle-breaking stepback:
I hope he can keep it up. It’s clear that the change in usage is messing with his rhythm.
With us, 40% of his FGAs were 3s. With Florida, a whopping 70% of his FGAs are 3s. The paint is clogged with quality big men and Boogie Fland is the main PG, which means Lee is mostly asked to space the floor as a SG. That’s not who he is.
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What’s the fascination with a florida gator player?
We get it, you’re mad at Lee for transferring and want to cast him into the outer darkness. Noted. No need to keep beating the horse.
The rest of us are curious about his performance on the defending national champion in a top-three conference because a) we’re rooting for him and/or b) we think his results might be indicative of future issues with transfers and NIL at Princeton.
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Go Gators