Florida most sensible scorer Thomas Haugh to go back, go on NBA draft

Florida ahead Thomas Haugh will go back to the Gators for his senior season, he instructed ESPN on Tuesday, delaying a possibility as a possible lottery pick out and most likely cementing Florida because the preseason No. 1 group in males’s faculty basketball.

Haugh, the No. 13 prospect in ESPN’s Most sensible 100 for the 2026 draft, turns into the highest-ranked prospect to announce his go back to university. He’s the primary participant since Michigan State’s Miles Bridges in 2017 to go for any other yr of college whilst projected as an NBA lottery pick out.

The 6-foot-9 Pennsylvania local’s choice to go back follows the identical announcement final week from frontcourt mate Alex Condon, whilst beginning middle Rueben Chinyelu introduced Monday he is trying out the NBA draft waters however will deal with his faculty eligibility to go back to Florida if he withdraws from the draft.

“Maximum guys in my place within the draft, it could be a no brainer to visit the NBA,” Haugh instructed ESPN. “It isn’t simply the NIL. It is a probability to play with my boys. To play for trainer [Todd] Golden. To visit the varsity I like to play for. It used to be indisputably a more difficult choice than final yr, nevertheless it used to be perfect for my occupation and long run.”

When the buzzer sounded in Tampa on the finish of Florida’s 73-72 second-round loss to 8-seed Iowa, Golden apprehensive that this would possibly had been the final time his nationwide championship-winning frontcourt would play in combination. Haugh had eyes at the NBA, and Condon and Chinyelu have been additionally weighing NBA choices. With the character of the switch portal, it used to be unclear who can be again.

Haugh earned third-team All-American honors and first-team All-SEC honors this previous season, averaging 17.1 issues and six.1 rebounds according to recreation, and used to be monitoring conveniently for the mid first-round. There used to be no expectation that he’d go back.

“I feel that lit a fireplace beneath me,” Haugh stated of the NCAA event loss. “I [didn’t] need my final reminiscence of Florida basketball to be that.”

“The toughest phase used to be the preliminary week,” Golden instructed ESPN. “His thoughts were made up, he used to be going. When the season ended how it did for us, it used to be a little bit little bit of a punch within the abdomen. Allowed a little bit extra to mirror. Now not most effective on that recreation, however how the season ended and the place we’re. That second allowed for this to occur.”

At their end-of-season assembly, Golden and Haugh joked about him having any other yr of eligibility. However the thought of Haugh returning for his senior season did not seem to have any momentum till Haugh’s circle of relatives, and agent Aaron Klevan of THE·TEAM, approached Golden and requested what a possible go back would appear to be on the subject of state of affairs and repayment.

“They in point of fact did not want to promote a lot,” Haugh stated. “Trainer Golden and the team of workers did an ideal task, now not pressuring me. They are my guys. They are gonna textual content me and contact me regardless. They did not do a lot recruiting. I grew up a Florida fan. Tim Tebow. The back-to-back nationwide championships. The 2014 group, I bear in mind. They did not in point of fact need to promote me.”

Whilst NIL wasn’t the only real issue, Haugh will probably be a number of the highest-paid avid gamers in faculty basketball subsequent season. He’ll earn earnings proportion repayment very similar to what mid-first-round selections are assured, along with profitable true NIL and endorsement offers.

The primary-round rookie contract scale is tied to a given yr’s wage cap, with assured cash tied to every slot 1-30 in descending order of price. In 2025-26, the typical Yr 1 wage for an NBA rookie picked within the 11-15 vary, the place Haugh used to be projected, used to be $4,309,660 — a bunch he initiatives to transparent simply this season.

“The original perspective that we have been in a position to force house to Tommy’s circle of relatives and Aaron Klevan, this dude has actual bottom-line NIL price,” Golden stated. “That is a space at the moment the place elite faculty athletes have a bonus over mid-tier execs. Tommy Haugh’s reliable NIL price at Florida is 10-20x what his NIL price can be on an NBA group subsequent yr. On account of the logo consciousness at Florida, he’s going to had been right here for 4 years, all of the ones issues at the side of him returning, our supporters in point of fact admire the loyalty.”

Monetary incentives have widely modified for all NBA possibilities, with faculty methods now in a position to competing towards multi-year rookie contracts within the quick time period. The ones marketplace forces, coupled with what NBA executives view as a far thinner draft in 2027, have led to a flood of school avid gamers to stick in class with out trying out the draft waters.

Haugh instructed ESPN he plans to proceed specializing in his 3-point taking pictures and making improvements to his convenience stage enjoying small ahead. There may be room for him to toughen his present status with any other robust season, specifically with the NBA’s uncertainty across the energy of subsequent yr’s incoming freshman elegance.

“Getting this team of men again in combination for one final run, they will have numerous consideration and notoriety, numerous it deserved,” Golden stated. “We are going to have a ton of drive, a ton of eyeballs on us this yr. However it is a privilege. Use it to gasoline us the best method. Cannot permit it to splinter us. However we would a lot quite be the hunted than the hunters. We simply have to simply accept there may be numerous drive that incorporates that.”