Not too many basketball fans outside of the Sunshine State have seen our new look Gators.

They’re now 3-0, fresh off of a 105-51 pasting of NC Central and continuing to impress.

If you’re not yet familiar with the names Nick Calathes, Chandler Parsons, and Marreese Speights, I predict you soon will be. They’re all terrific players. Walter Hodge, Adam Allen and Alex Tyus are all big-time players as well. Dan Werner hasn’t found his shot yet but is playing great defense and is a thick, muscular 6′ 7″ small forward. Jai Lucas has the raw talent to be a great point guard, but in my view is still a little more raw than his fellow freshmen.

I’m trying not to get too excited yet. The Gators haven’t played any top competition yet. But man oh man, they look good as a team. I’m not just talking about blowing teams out on the stat sheet: they play with a lot more polish than you’d expect for a group of frosh and sophs.

As a regular over at Kentucky blog ASeaofBlue.com, I decided to pose the question: just what do UK fans think of our Gators? Could our young squad actually keep their winning streak — which extends now across three seasons — alive over Kentucky, even despite their coaching “upgrade” and experienced senior leadership?

Before you accuse me of insanity, I ask you to consider the following: despite their reputation for being a little over-the-top with regards to their basketball obsession (what’s so wrong with that, Gator Nation?) they are probably the sport’s most knowledgeable fanbase. They will sit down and talk serious basketball with anyone, including rival fans. In my opinion they possess great objectivity and will tell you what they really think, even if it doesn’t always cast their own beloved WildCats in the best possible light.

One of my favorite contributers, Ken Howlett, had this to say abour our boys:

Okay, I’ll take the bait.

Calathes, Parsons, Tyus, Lucas, and Allen are all terrific freshmen.

I am on record here at ASoB as saying that Florida will be much better than the so-called experts think.

Even though the Gators will be relying on freshmen to contribute a tremendous amount of minutes, that doesn’t necessarily translate into a rebuilding year in Gainesville.

15-20 years ago a 4 year high school player would play 110-140 games during his career. A high percentage of those games would be against mediocre competition. Today though, with the evolution of AAU ball, these same players are playing an additional 30-50 games against elite competition. This fact tends to expose the pretenders, and make the legitimate blue chips even better players. So, for this reason, Florida relying on youngsters isn’t a bad thing. It just means they will probably be very good for a long time.

Calathes is a legitimate big time player, and will probably be Florida’s leading scorer, but Parsons will be just as dangerous. At 6′9, with the ability to drain 3’s, and a good inside game, he will be what all coaches desire in players: Hard to guard. His ability to float on the perimeter brings a big defender out, away from the basket, leaving Speights in a one on one situation. Or, he can post up on the block, presenting a high percentage shot opportunity.

Enjoying a prosperous year also depends on Hodge’s ability to control tempo, and distribute the rock on the break. Keeping everyone involved is a major hurdle to overcome. It is easier said than done. The old man of the group as a junior, Hodge will also have to provide leadership to his younger teammates. Once again easier said than done.

Speights’ play will also be key to a successful year. He hasn’t had many opportunities to showcase his abilities because of the enormous talent of the Gators last year. He will be a focal point of the offense this year though. While I do not anticipate Speights leading the Gators in scoring, I feel the offense will probably run through him. If I were Donovan, in the half-court, I would run the high post. If this is the case, Speights’ decision making will be of the utmost importance. Kicking out, and ball reversal will fall under his umbrella of responsibilties. This will be new to him, so his ability to find the mismatch and to make pin point passes, will be tested.

The secondary break should bring bountiful point scoring opportunities this year for UFA. With Calathes and Parsons, Donovan has two big spot up shooters. The secondary break, which relies on mismatches for easy scoring opportunities, will prove to go hand in hand with UFA’s team makeup. This is where Hodge’s decision making comes into play. Finding the right shooter, before the D has a chance to set, will be his primary concern. If he proves adept at this task, UFA will once again put up large numbers offensively.

This Florida team reminds me somewhat of a mid ’90’s UK team. Long, and athletic with solid point guard play. Calathes, Parsons, Tyus, Werner, and Allen are all 6′6 or bigger. They all can shoot the ball, and are interchangeable. The designation of positions will not be an important factor. They are all basically swing players which, with solid point play, can lead to some entertaining basketball.

Overall, I think the Gators will challenge for the SEC East title. Simply too much talent not to. They will encounter some tough times, but in the end game their talent is simply too great to struggle for very long. I love the makeup of the roster. The mix of size, and athleticism is what wins games. Donovan will not have to dig too deep into the playbook to uncover a plethora of mismatches available to him on any given night.

As far as UFA versus UK, I’ll reserve judgment until after the first of the year. But if you put a gun to my head I would prognosticate a split.

Pretty flattering coming from a Wildcat fan, no?

Florida’s first chance to prove themselves against a “name” team will come against — who else? — Ohio State on December 22nd. The game will be in Columbus, and the Buckeyes themselves also feature a new look; star players Greg Oden, Mike Conley and Daquean Cook have moved on to the NBA. This game will be the Gators’ toughest matchup in the preseason, but it’s starting to look like a very winnable game, especially considering that Ohio State struggled most recently against Ivy Leaguer Columbia, winning 68-54.

The ’04s are gone, but in their place, the Fab Five are off to a great start.