Florida offers in-state forward
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Florida's search for a big forward in the Class of 2016 officially expanded on Thursday when the Gators offered a scholarship to Oldsmar (Fla.) Christian School forward Dontay Bassett.
Bassett, a 6-foot-9, 210-pounder, was initially scouted by Gators assistant Dusty May last Wednesday and then watched again recently by head coach Mike White.
In addition to the Florida offer Bassett has offers from Arkansas, Boston College, Colorado, Kansas State, Oregon State and others. A native of Northern California, Bassett said that the Gators offer is one he has coveted for sometime.
"It felt great," he said about the offer. "I wanted an offer from them since last year. I will be making my top five schools tonight."
With visits already scheduled to Oregon State on 9/18 and Colorado on 9/24, plus the long coveted Florida offer; it would appear that three of his top five are set.
Florida is set to graduate Dorian Finney-Smith and Alex Murphy after the upcoming season, and it's other well regarded big man John Egbunu is a redshirt sophomore with NBA aspirations. Bassett would bring inside scoring, defensive rebounding and physical play in the post. He has good hands, can hit the 12-footer and if he doesn't get the offensive rebound, Bassett has a quick second jump and a knack for tipping the ball to keep it alive to continue the possession.
The Gators also continue to chase Missouri forward Tyler Cook, who recently took an official visit to Gainesville and will trip to Iowa this weekend, and remains a possibility for White.
Stay tuned to Inside the Gators for regular updates on the Florida basketball staff's recruiting efforts.
Russ Wood is a contributing national basketball recruiting analyst for Inside the Gators & Rivals. You can click HERE to follow him on Twitter.