![Jacksonville Dolphins guard Robert McCray V (13) drives the lane against North Florida Ospreys forward Josh Harris (10) during the first half of an NCAA men’s basketball matchup Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025 at Jacksonville University in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_6000,h_3375/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/184/01k20sactyctbx4t5hn9.jpg "Jacksonville Dolphins guard Robert McCray V (13) drives the lane against North Florida Ospreys forward Josh Harris (10) during the first half of an NCAA men’s basketball matchup Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025 at Jacksonville University in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]")
The retirement of longtime coach Leonard Hamilton meant ushering in a new era for the Seminoles and it’s one of Hamilton’s former players who gets the honor. Luke Loucks is now head coach for Florida State and he’s hoping to rejuvenate a program that’s been quite stagnant across the last four seasons. Last year’s team struggled mightily at times but managed to scrape out a 17-15 record albeit in a tough year for the ACC as a whole.
It’s a common refrain in this day and age, but just about everyone is gone from last season’s roster for the Seminoles. Leading scorer Jamir Watkins was a senior and never coming back, but it hurts losing talented players like Taylor Bol Bowen, Daquan Davis, and Malique Ewin to prominent schools. A few freshmen from last season are returning in 7-footer Alier Maluk and forward AJ Swinton but neither played a ton last year.
The list of new faces from the transfer portal is numerous, beginning with former Clemson forward Chauncey Wiggins, an experienced ACC talent. Former St. Bonaventure wing Lajae Jones should secure starting minutes. Among the backcourt additions of note are Kobe Magee, who had nice production last year at Drexel, and Martin Somerville, a point guard who was America East Rookie of the Year at UMass Lowell.
However, the focus today is on Robert McCray V as the most important new Seminole for several reasons. A 6-4 point guard from Columbia, South Carolina, his career began here in the ACC at Wake Forest, playing backup minutes before redshirting his sophomore year. McCray then transferred to Jacksonville and became one of the A-Sun’s most notable guards, scoring more than 18 points per game in his first season. Last year as a junior he put up 16.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per night while earning First Team All-A-Sun honors.
Jumping back to the ACC after success in the A-Sun isn’t easy, but it’s the fact that he has that prior experience that makes McCray an intriguing addition. He was stuffing the stat sheets at Jacksonville and became a phenomenal point guard leading these Dolphins, but can he do similar work with the Seminoles? The step up in talent will be significant and his 3-point shooting numbers did take a step back last season, but we believe that McCray can be a very important piece in this backcourt.
This ragtag group of new talent has a lot on their shoulders and it’s hard to picture Florida State competing with that top echelon of ACC schools. They certainly need some of these new faces to step up, especially those with prior ACC experience like McCray and Wiggins. Raw talent is one thing, but McCray has shown his athleticism and ability to run an offense and it’s all about if he can be that same type of player under the brighter lights of power conference basketball.