Walter Clayton Jr. and Will Richard thrilled Florida basketball fans in March and into early April with an unforgettable run to a national championship.
Clayton made seemingly every clutch shot that was put before him, and Richard provided plenty, too, as the duo showed that great guard play does indeed win during March Madness. For the backcourt of the Gators’ glorious recent past though, there are new challenges awaiting in the NBA.
For Clayton, it’ll be with the Utah Jazz. For Richard, it’ll come with the Golden State Warriors. Those challenges are only a few weeks away when NBA training camps begin and the rookie season grind ensues for Clayton and Richard.
And what about now? Well, while Clayton and Richard get ready to take on those new horizons in the pros, they decided to come back to Gainesville, the scene of their college glory, to give back to the program they’ve already given so much to. On Saturday, Clayton and Richard were spotted at the O’Connell Center playing some early September basketball with the Gators who’ll be playing for Todd Golden in 2025-26.
Zach Abolverdi, a senior writer for GatorsOnline, captured the moments on Saturday with this video of UF basketball past and present coming together:
Plenty of Gator basketball fans filled the arena to catch glimpses of Clayton and Richard, as well as this coming season’s players. The UF football game starting in a few hours against South Florida over at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium could wait for later in the afternoon.
For now, there were a few UF champions back in town to give the current players a little run, and it was must-see at the O’Dome.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.