Florida’s hopes of repeating as men’s basketball national champions in 2025–26 just got a whole lot more real. 

In one of the biggest transfer portal commitments of the offseason, the Gators reeled in Arkansas Razorbacks transfer guard Boogie Fland. Fland, who once seemed likely to go one-and-done, withdrew his name from the NBA draft last week and officially made his commitment to Florida during an official visit early this week. The former elite recruit averaged over 13 points and five assists per game in an injury-shortened first college season at Arkansas and profiles as one of the best guards in college basketball in 2025–26. Sources indicate Fland spurned higher-dollar NIL promises from other programs to join the Gators, buying into a Florida system that developed Walter Clayton Jr. into a likely first-round pick and Final Four Most Outstanding Player.

The Fland addition continues a monster offseason for the defending national champions, who have rapidly rebuilt a championship-caliber roster after losing essentially their entire backcourt rotation headlined by Clayton. The Gators beat out Kansas, St. John’s and a host of other top programs for Princeton Tigers transfer Xaivian Lee, who was expected to share backcourt duties with returner Denzel Aberdeen. But after Aberdeen surprisingly hit the portal close to the entry deadline in late April, the Gators’ pursuit of another high-level backcourt option intensified. They were long believed to be a favorite to land Fland’s services once he officially entered the portal on April 22, and things moved quickly once Fland decided to return to college basketball over being a likely second-round pick in this year’s draft. 

Todd Golden’s staff also successfully retained huge pieces from a frontcourt rotation that was among the nation’s best last season. Super sub Thomas Haugh (who’s expected to slide into the starting lineup at the three next season) and starting center Rueben Chinyelu both announced their return to Gainesville, Fla., on NIL deals worth well over $1 million each. The final domino is starting power forward Alex Condon, who is still going through the NBA draft process. Sources indicated Condon is likely to return to Gainesville unless he receives the type of draft day promise that would be impossible to turn down, likely from a team drafting in the top 20 or so . If Condon returns, Florida’s roster is expected to be set outside of perhaps adding a developmental piece or two.

That core of five players (Fland, Lee, Haugh, Condon and Chinyelu) would make up perhaps the most talented starting lineup in the country. How Haugh takes to playing as more of a wing is a legitimate question, though he made strides as a three-point shooter as a sophomore and the Gators have more natural wings in AJ Brown (Ohio) and CJ Ingram who will allow Haugh to slide to his more natural power forward spot at times. While there have been questions about how Lee and Fland (two high-usage players) might fit together, each should be able to relieve some of the pressure on the other to carry an offense that otherwise lacks shot creation. Whether it comes together as seamlessly as last year’s group did remains to be seen, but there’s a strong case to be made that Golden and staff have built an even more talented roster than the one that cut down the nets in San Antonio last month. 

And if things weren’t already going great in Gainesville, the Gators also locked in Golden for the foreseeable future with a contract extension through 2030–31 that makes him one of the five highest-paid coaches in men’s college basketball. That extension essentially takes him off the market as a potential target from other schools next spring, with a buyout of $16 million if he leaves for another college job following the 2025–26 season. 

Repeating as national champions is an incredibly challenging endeavor, no matter how easy the 2023–24 UConn Huskies made it look. But with Fland in tow, the Gators now have a legitimate chance to challenge for another championship next April in Indianapolis.