Through most of the offseason, Gonzaga Basketball knew it had one of the best frontcourts in all of college basketball, led by returning forward Braden Huff, along with Arizona State transfer big man Massamba Diop. They also knew they had the returning sophomore duo of Mario Saint-Supery and Davis Fogle, two consensus breakout sophomore candidates.
Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, Saint-Supery chose to return home to Spain to play for Valencia overseas. That left a giant hole in the backcourt, and the program needed to find a lead guard. Because of the various lawsuits across the country, a number of talented 5th-year players are looking to gain an extra year of eligibility.
On Wednesday night, Gonzaga landed one of them.
NEWS: Florida transfer Xaivian Lee has committed to Gonzaga, source tells @247Sports
— Dushawn London (@DushawnLondon1) August 27, 2026
Lee averaged 11.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists last season. https://t.co/exbpcEyjpC pic.twitter.com/Ka1RN3OIaL
Xaivian Lee is a 6’3 guard who spent his first three years at Princeton, earning All-Ivy League honors multiple times. He transferred to Florida a year ago, where he went on to start all 35 games and average 11.6 ppg and 4.2 apg, shooting 42% from the field. After a rough start in the non-conference, Lee got things going in SEC play, including outings such as 22 points against Kentucky, along with 11 points and 10 assists on the road at Ole Miss.
Gonzaga’s backcourt has plenty of talent, including Dayton transfer Javon Bennett (15.8 ppg and 2.9 apg), former Houston guard and five-star prospect Isiah Harwell, and Nathan De Sousa, a 23-year-old French guard prospect coming from overseas. But it’s still not a done deal, as both Lee and Bennett need court orders to be able to play, and Bennett’s Ohio case is currently on a stay, making him technically ineligible right now. Plus, De Sousa hasn’t been officially cleared by the NCAA to play for the Bulldogs next season.
But that’s the reality for many teams in the country looking to add talent late in the offseason. If things go well for Gonzaga and decisions fall in their favor, this is a top-10 caliber team in college basketball next season, with Final Four aspirations. Even with his up-and-down play, Lee still was a starter on a 1-seeded Gators squad.
There’s a real chance he can make it back-to-back years on a 1-seed roster in the NCAA Tournament at Gonzaga if he’s cleared to play.
Add us as a preferred source on Google