As much as players like Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon are the NBA prospects currently on Florida’s roster, one would be remiss not to highlight the play of Rueben Chinyelu over the past two weeks. While NBA mock drafts have been slow to catch up to Chinyelu, he has arguably emerged as Florida’s best player since the turn of the calendar into SEC play.
And on Tuesday, as part of his 21 rebound night, Chinyelu pulled off something no one in a Gator uniform has done since 2005.
Rueben Chinyelu gets his 4th straight double-double
Chinyelu’s 15 points and 21 rebounds gave him his fourth straight double-double, which has all resulted in Florida wins. He became the first Gator since David Lee in 2005 to pull off four straight double-doubles.
After the game, Todd Golden made sure to highlight the improved play of Chinyelu, who explored the NBA Draft last season but opted to come back to Gainesville:
"Yeah, I think you're seeing a guy that's continued to grow and get better in real time. And he's impacting the game tremendously. I think he's just playing with such good balance, toughness. He's obviously difficult to officiate, because I think he gets fouled on every play. And there's sometimes where he doesn't get those whistles, but he's just really come into his own. Kind of got really comfortable offensively, but he just impacts the game so well defensively and on the glass that he's become a real stalwart for us in the frontcourt."
To Golden’s point, it’s the strength of Chinyelu that has become noticeable in 2026 and has enabled him to power through and contact that would probably result in a foul if he were a smaller and weaker player.
What’s also become noticeable about Chinyelu’s evolution is his scoring touch around the rim. At times last year, he felt stiff when trying to score. His 59% free throw shooting percentage last year was emblematic of these struggles.
While his free-throw percentage is at 64% at the moment, it is starting to feel more consistent. He hit four in a row after a flagrant foul against Vanderbilt and he also hit a key jumper from the free throw line to power Florida.
As the Gators continue to navigate SEC play and start to work their way back up the rankings, expect more and more buzz to start to find Chinyelu.