This local team eyes Florida basketball guard Walter Clayton Jr. ahead of NBA draft
This local team eyes Florida basketball guard Walter Clayton Jr. ahead of NBA draft
Florida basketball head coach Todd Golden revealed that the Orlando Magic are among the NBA teams expressing strong interest in guard Walter Clayton Jr. after appearing on FanDuel's Run It Back podcast.
Clayton is a projected first-round pick in this year's NBA draft after putting up one of the most decorated individual seasons in Florida Gators basketball history.
"One of the teams that always wins will figure it out and take him," Golden said. "I know the Magic really like him, and they have two picks in the first round. One of those teams that really values a winning player, a guy who has a really good attitude and has won at the highest level in college, I think someone will figure it out in a big way and hopefully select him close to that lottery."
Orlando holds the No. 16 and No. 25 overall picks in the 2025 draft, both falling within the range where Clayton has been consistently projected by analysts.
Clayton, a 6-foot-3-inch guard, led the Gators to a national championship in 2025, capturing Final Four Most Outstanding Player, SEC Tournament MVP and consensus first-team All-America honors. He set a Gators single-season scoring record with 713 points while also hitting 117 threes–the second-most ever by a Gator in one season.
After transferring from Iona and spending two seasons at Florida, Clayton scored 1,346 points, hit 210 three-pointers and maintained an .876 free throw percentage–all top marks in program history.
Golden believes Clayton's versatility and intangibles will translate immediately at the next level.
"The jump that he's made over the last 12 months, I don't think has been appreciated," Golden said. "Obviously, he was the darling of the NCAA Tournament and put us on his back at times and finished games for us and deserved to win Most Outstanding Player. I think he is a remarkable basketball player. He can shot-make with the best of them."
The 2025 NBA draft will be held from June 25-26 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
As for the Orange and Blue, they'll reload again for another title chase, but Clayton's departure marks the end of a historic chapter–and potentially the beginning of another just over 100 miles away in Orlando.
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
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