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Florida basketball: 10 best NBA careers in Gators history

By Josh Yourish

Mar 9, 2007; Atlanta, GA, USA; Florida Gators guard Taurean Green (11), forward Al Horford (42) and forward Joakim Noah wait between plays against the Georgia Bulldogs during the second half of a quarterfinal round SEC Tournament game at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, GA. Floirda won 74-57. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports Copyright © 2007 Jason Parkhurst
Mar 9, 2007; Atlanta, GA, USA; Florida Gators guard Taurean Green (11), forward Al Horford (42) and forward Joakim Noah wait between plays against the Georgia Bulldogs during the second half of a quarterfinal round SEC Tournament game at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, GA. Floirda won 74-57. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports Copyright © 2007 Jason Parkhurst /
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June 14, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward David Lee (10) moves the ball against the defense of Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson (13) in the first half in game five of the NBA Finals. at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
June 14, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward David Lee (10) moves the ball against the defense of Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson (13) in the first half in game five of the NBA Finals. at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

No. 5 best Florida basketball NBA career: David Lee

  • Drafted: 2005 No. 30 overall (first round)
  • NBA career games: 829
  • NBA PPG: 13.5
  • 2013 All-NBA
  • 2015 NBA Champion
  • 2x All-Star

David Lee was the ultimate victim of the changing NBA. He was drafted by the Knicks in 2005 and in the 2009-10 season, he was an All-Star power forward who averaged 20.2 points and 11.7 rebounds a game.

The next season, he signed a lucrative contract with the Golden State Warriors and again was an All-Star in 2012-13. Two years later, still in his prime, Lee was resigned to the bench and was an afterthought when the Warriors won the NBA Finals behind Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green.

Lee was an old-school power forward, best attacking out of the mid-post or with his back to the basket. Steve Kerr took over as the head coach of the Warriors and introduced the pace-and-space era to the NBA. Giving Curry and Thompson the ultimate green light to fire away from three and using Draymond Green as a small-ball center.

Green provided space for Curry and Thompson and was a high-level passer who made it all happen. Lee was suddenly obsolete. He had a very good career and was a two-time All-Star, but was never able to adapt to the modern NBA.

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