When Florida point guard Nick Calathes left for Greece last spring, the Gators targeted three potential replacements. After losing out on Eric Bledsoe to Kentucky and Lamont “Momo” Jones to Arizona, the Gators landed Israeli 18-under national team point guard Nimrod Tishman.
Here’s a look at how three three point guards have fared through the first month of the season:
Eric Bledsoe
10 games – 10 starts
29.1 minutes per game
11.1 points per game
30 assists, 40 turnovers
Lamont Jones
9 games, one start
21.2 minutes per game
5.4 points per game
eight assists, 17 turnovers
Nimrod Tishman
5 games, 0 starts
1.6 minutes per game
0.4 points per game
two assists, no turnovers
Tishman’s playing time has been held back by two factors: 1. Freshman Kenny Boynton’s surprising ability to play quality minutes as UF’s backup point guard; and 2. Tishman’s inability to defend.
“He’s still getting use to the speed of the game, the pace of the game,” Florida coach Billy Donovan said.
Though Florida has developed a decent three-guard rotation with Boynton and sophomores Ray Shipman and Erving Walker, the development of a fourth quality guard could come in handy when Southeastern Conference play begins. Boynton is averaging 32.3 minutes per game, which is a lot to ask of a 6-foot-2, 183-pound freshman. Boynton is a terrific athlete, but it’s still unknown whether that workload will catch up with him come February and March.
It also makes you wonder what could have been if Florida had landed Bledsoe or Jones.
