Florida Basketball: Complete Roster, Season Preview for 2014-15 Gators

After a successful season led by senior stars, the Florida Gators are in the process of reloading for the 2014-15 season. 

Young players from last year's squad, a few transfers and incoming freshmen will help Billy Donovan's team compete with Kentucky in the SEC once again. That task may be tough, but with a coach like Donovan anything is possible. 

Continue reading on for a look at how the Gators' season will pan out. 

Key Newcomers

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Eli Carter, Guard

Carter will suit up for the Gators after redshirting following his transfer from Rutgers. 

The redshirt junior scored 14.9 points per game for the Scarlet Knights two years ago before leaving for Gainesville. 

He will be expected to put up similar numbers in the points department at the guard position following the departure of Scottie Wilbekin.

Jon Horford, Forward

Horford is another transfer expected to fill a role left open by a graduating senior. The former Michigan player will bring a ton of leadership to the paint, which is needed with no Patric Young. 

He will get the opportunity to play a good amount of minutes this season, unlike the 13.8 per game he averaged while with the Wolverines. 

Key Returners

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Michael Frazier II, Guard

Frazier is a key weapon for the Gators from beyond the arc, but he will be relied on for more than that in his junior season. 

With Wilbekin out of the program, he will have to provide a ton of production from the backcourt, where he averaged 12.4 points per game in 30.6 minutes per game last season. 

Dorian Finney-Smith, Forward

Finney-Smith will be asked to replace the frontcourt numbers put up by Young and Will Yeguete last season, which is no easy task. 

The redshirt junior averaged 8.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game during the 2013-14 season, but those numbers may not be enough to power Florida to success this time around. 

Kasey Hill, Guard

The point will be manned by Hill, who averaged 22 minutes per game in his freshman season. 

Hill will play more this season as a starter, and he will be looking to improve on his 3.1 assists per game.

He will obviously hear some comparisons to Wilbekin until he finds his own in the lineup. That will need to happen early with the strong nonconference schedule of the Gators. 

Roster and Projected Rotation

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Donovan will have to rely on a bunch of underclassmen after having a ton of seniors to trust last season. 

Starting Lineup

PG: Kasey Hill

SG: Michael Frazier II

G: Eli Carter

PF: Dorian Finney-Smith

C: Chris Walker 

Key Bench Players

Devin Robinson, Forward

Chris Chiozza, Guard

Jon Horford, Forward 

Jacob Kurtz, Guard

Donovan will have to work on building depth behind his starting lineup, which does contain a decent amount of experience. That experience comes from different places across the college basketball landscape, which means chemistry could be an issue early on. 

Biggest X-Factors

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Frazier's Shooting

Frazier is one of the few players in college basketball who can impact a game by taking just a few shots from deep range. 

He was a 44.7 percent shooter from beyond the arc last season, and the same production is expected of him again. 

Chemistry with New Faces

As mentioned in the last slide, the Gators have gone through a ton of roster transition this season, and it may take some time for everyone to get adjusted to each other. 

Hill, Frazier and Finney-Smith were key to the team's success last season, but now they all have bigger roles. 

Carter and Horford did have all offseason to acclimate themselves to the lineup, which could help them beat the learning curve. 

Depth 

Donovan had success last season by using a seven-player rotation. Entering this season, he does not have the quality of players that he did last season, which will require him to dig deeper into his bench on occasion. 

With that being said, we could see an unexpected player earn more playing time as the season progresses. 

Best- and Worst-Case Scenarios

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Best-Case Scenario

The Gators get off to a terrific start and win the Battle 4 Atlantis by beating Wisconsin in the process. Florida also earns a big win at Allen Fieldhouse to send a statement to the nation. 

Add in a home win over Connecticut, and the Gators will fly high in SEC play and challenge Kentucky.

Splitting the season series with the Wildcats will be seen as acceptable if nonconference play goes off without a hitch.

Worst-Case Scenario

The Gators have a rough trip to the Bahamas and fall victim to a Georgetown upset in the first round. 

The trip to Lawrence is unsuccessful, and the defending champion leaves the O'Connell Center with a big victory. 

Florida also finds out early that the SEC is more difficult than expected, and Kentucky cruises to the regular-season title. 

2014-15 Prediction

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2014-15 Prediction: 26-5 (17-1) 

The SEC is still a weak conference, and the Gators should take advantage of that. Florida could easily head into Lexington on March 7 at 17-0 in conference play, especially if they beat Kentucky at home. 

In nonconference play, the Gators should beat Connecticut and win at least two games in the Bahamas. However, the trip to Kansas may be too much for them to handle. 

A top-three seed in the NCAA tournament is possible if the Gators pick up enough key wins. 

Follow Joe on Twitter @JTansey90. 

All statistics obtained from ESPN.com.