Florida basketball: Is new Gator commit Isaiah Brown underrated?

Feb 1, 2023; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden reacts against the Tennessee Volunteers during the second half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 1, 2023; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden reacts against the Tennessee Volunteers during the second half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Florida basketball landed their first commit in the 2024 recruiting cycle last night in 4-star shooting guard Isaiah Brown.

Brown, who attends Orlando Christian Prep decided to stay home and play for his in-state Gators over SEC foes like Georgia and Missouri.

After missing out on a few guards in the transfer portal, it’s a good win for Todd Golden and his staff to start building up backcourt depth for the future.

His commitment was well timed as well after the Gators missed out on Dedan Thomas Jr. earlier in the day.

https://twitter.com/IsaiahBrown73/status/1657876758350143488?s=20

Brown is rated as a 4-star prospect on Rivals, but other sites like On3 and 247 have him as a 3-star in their system.

Per On3’s industry rating, which combines the evaluations of multiple sources, Isaiah is the 121st-best player in the country, the 24th-best shooting guard in his class, and the 11th-best player coming out of Florida.

But could he be a diamond in the rough?

Isaiah is a very good scorer, putting up 18.6 points per game on 52% shooting from the field. He’s also a 39% three-point shooter and an 80% shooter from the free-throw line.

With his 6’4”-170 frame, he’s also effective on the glass, recording 5.7 rebounds per game. Brown holds his own on the defensive end as well with 1.3 steals per game.

The area he has to work on, as well as the probable reason he’s rated where he is, are his assists and turnovers.

As a shooting guard, Brown isn’t expected to be getting guys involved like a PG is, but only 1.9 assists per game isn’t the number he needs to be elite.

Another reason he needs to increase his assist is that his assist-to-turnover ratio is just bad, sitting at 0.75 for last season.

That number being below one is a problem and something Golden will need to address.

But if you ask me, that skillset will come easily with more experience and college coaching. And Isaiah is ahead of a lot of other players scoring the ball.

Brown could be a sleeper in this class and a great player for the Gators.

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