Florida center Rueben Chinyelu is withdrawing from the 2025 NBA Draft and returning to the Gators for his junior season, according to Jon Rothstein. Chinyelu’s decision marks another significant offseason win for the reigning national champions, though he’s presently the only starter on his way back to the program for the team’s title defense.
A former four-star product of the NBA Academy Africa, Chinyelu spent his freshman season at Washington State before transferring to Florida in April 2024. He immediately stepped into the starting center role in lieu of an injured Micah Handlogten holding that role in all 41 of Florida’s games last season.
Chinyelu averaed 6.0 points and 6.6 rebounds per game while hitting 60% of his shots from the field. He reached double-digit scoring in 10 games, including a 10-point, 8-rebound performance in Florida’s Sweet 16 win against Maryland.
While Chinyelu is still developing his offensive game, he proved to be one of the SEC’s top interior defenders in his first year with the Gators. He used all of his 6-foot-10, 260-pound frame to block 34 shots, which ranked second among Florida defenders, and secure 169 defensive rebounds.
Chinyelu has two seasons of eligibility remaining after participating in 76 games with Washington State and Florida. He is the second important component of the Gators frontcourt to return after rising junior Thomas Haugh, the team’s first big man off the bench and a spot starter last season, also decided to come back for another year in Gainesville, Florida.
All eyes on Alex Condon
Though Chinyelu and Haugh are back in the boat, Florida is still waiting to see whether starting sophomore forward Alex Condon will remain in the NBA Draft or return to the program ensuring the Gators retain their standout frontcourt trio.
The 6-foot-11 Condon has until May 28 to make his final decision. He’s widely viewed as a borderline first-round prospect thanks to his length and athletic potential, though he did not participate in any scrimmages at the NBA Combine.
“My mindset is I’m here now and I want to be in the NBA for now,” Condon told CBS Sports at the combine regarding his future. “I got to get that guarantee. I know I’m in that 20-35 range now. I have a good situation waiting for me at Florida, teammates that I just won a national championship with. It would have to be a good situation for me to stay, but the feedback I’m getting from teams is positive. I’m ready to stay if I need to.”
Condon averaged 10.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per game last season. He also led the Gators with 49 blocks and flashed his versatility by tallying 82 assists.
Florida loading up for another run
Regardless of whether Condon returns, Florida is stocking up for another deep run in 2025-26. Beyond Chinyelu and Haugh returning, the Gators also brin back Handlogten to bolster a loaded frontcourt. Condon would be the cherry on top.
Chinyelu and Haugh provide plenty of positional versatility. The 6-foot-9 Haugh will be hard to keep out of the starting lineup next season, regardless of who is in the mix, but he’s more than capable of slotting in at small forward while allowing Chinyelu and potentially Condon to share the floor.
Florida is undergoing a wave of change in the backcourt. Gone are leading scorer Walter Clayton Jr., uber-athlete Alijah Martin, postseason star Will Richard and reliable bench option Denzel Aberdeen — the former three had their eligibility expire, while Aberdeen transferred to Kentucky.
To offset some of the lost production, Florida signed former Princeton point guard Xaivian Lee — the No. 32 prospect in 247Sports’ transfer rankings — and four-star Ohio transfer AJ Brown, who averaged 13.2 points per game while shooting 38.8% from 3-point range last season.
The Gators are also in the mix for five-star Arkansas transfer Boogie Fland, the top combo guard in the portal. Fland battled through injury as a true freshman to play in 21 games while averaging 13.5 points and a team-high 5.14 assists per game.
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