Busting Brackets
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SEC Basketball: Way-too-early 2019-20 preseason power rankings

By Dakota Cox

LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY - MARCH 09: Jalen Hudson #3 of the Florida Gators handles the ball while being guarded by Keldon Johnson #3 of the Kentucky Wildcats in the first half at Rupp Arena on March 09, 2019 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY - MARCH 09: Jalen Hudson #3 of the Florida Gators handles the ball while being guarded by Keldon Johnson #3 of the Kentucky Wildcats in the first half at Rupp Arena on March 09, 2019 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /
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NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE – MARCH 15: Andrew Nembhard #2 of the Florida Gators celebrates with KeVaughn Allen #5 in the game against the LSU Tigers during the Quarterfinals of the SEC Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE – MARCH 15: Andrew Nembhard #2 of the Florida Gators celebrates with KeVaughn Allen #5 in the game against the LSU Tigers during the Quarterfinals of the SEC Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

3. Florida Gators

Florida had to scrape and claw to make their way into the NCAA Tournament field this year, but it taught them a lot about perseverance. You might still believe that this is too high for a team that didn’t make it past the second round of the Tournament. However, let me just show you Florida’s recruiting class.

Florida currently has the sixth-best recruiting class in the country. This is thanks to Scottie Lewis and Tre Mann, two of the best players in the country. Scottie Lewis is the highest-rated prospect of White’s tenure at Florida, and the 6th-highest in school history.

The team is also bringing in Omar Payne, a 4-star center that will fill a crucial need for the Gators. They will be losing Kevarrius Hayes, and Payne should see some time on the floor at the 5.

This team is also losing KeVaughn Allen and Jalen Hudson, so there are definitely going to be a lot of minutes for the new team. However, this recruiting class is one that should make the fans very excited. If Andrew Nembhard and Noah Locke come back, this could be a very special group that will be better offensively than they were last year. There’s work to be done, but I think Florida can pull it off.

At the end of the day, recruiting classes are always a gamble. This might end up being one of the best in recent memory for Florida. It might fail and turn into one like Vanderbilt’s 2018 class. Either way, I am optimistic for the time being.

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