Calathes left!

[Floridagators13]

i cant believe he left for that euro league man.

why did he leave so soon.

 

[gatorsare#1]

That's not good news. Have to hope Donovan can work some magic with this group or UF will be going to yet another NIT.

 

[leakbrewergator]

I hope he turns out more like Udonis Haslem and not like Christian Drejer.

 

[Floridagators13]

he left wayyyyy too early. should of stayed another year and coule of been a real early pick in the draft.

 

[MahxFahn]

European basketball is on the rise, and Calathes is the latest American import to hit the scene. The league can only get better from here, and there’s nothing but room for Calathes to grow.

On the flip side, there is a clear loser in the situation: UF. More specifically, Billy Donovan.

Things haven’t gone so well since the back-to-back national titles. The Gators missed the tournament two years in a row, lost Marreese Speights to the NBA and Jai Lucas to a transfer.

Alex Tyus threatened to transfer a few weeks ago, Allan Chaney went through with it, recruits have withdrawn verbal commitments, and now the team’s best player is skipping off to Europe.

UF is looking more and more like a program in disarray.

The message I’m getting from all this is that these players aren’t happy under Donovan. Many of them came here with the notion that titles would keep raining down on the O’Dome, but as the struggles have hit, Donovan and his players don’t seem to be connecting that well.

Calathes was always viewed as Donovan’s Golden Boy, but it’s obvious that wasn’t true. Calathes went against his coach’s wishes by playing in Greece last summer, and now he is basically saying the Gators are pretty far down his list of priorities.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, but it doesn’t reflect well on the status of the program.

If this string of events happened to a coach who wasn’t coming off an incredible few seasons, there would be talk of job security. Billy D doesn’t (at least he shouldn’t) have to worry about that now, but athletics director Jeremy Foley needs to make it clear that this can’t keep up.

Foley needs to back Donovan in public but tell him to regain control of the team. If he can’t do that in the next three years and the Gators keep struggling on the court, then it might be time for some re-evaluating.

More on this HERE

 

[Floridagators13]

makes me angry, i cant even read it anymore.

 

[O-town Gator]

My biggest concern with Billy Donovan now is recruiting; he has a DEFINITE need to fill at point guard: http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/sports_college_uf/2009/05/billy-donovan-florida-gators-move-on-from-calathes-aftermath.html

 

[MahxFahn]

As much as I hate the situation the team has been placed in because of his departure I can't blame him for deciding to go to Greece. Weigh the pros and cons in your head as if you were him, I'm pretty sure I would go, and I would still be a Gator.

 

[O-town Gator]

The PBP posted a Q&A with Billy about the calathes situation: http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/gatorbytes/2009/05/27/qa-billy-donovan-talks-nick-calathes-and-the-gators-pg-situation/

 

[Leakfan12]

Calathes is a p---y. I hope they smack him around like the b---h he is in Greek leagues.

 

[gatorsare#1]

My biggest concern with Billy Donovan now is recruiting; he has a DEFINITE need to fill at point guard:

Donovan is the reason we've been terrible the past 2 years. His decision to go to Orlando and come back cost us recruits. Donovan gets the blame for 2 NIT's in a row.

 

[CaliZona_Gator]

This move by Calathes hurts us. I feel he should have stayed at least one more year before making the decision to go into any pro league. I'm sort of surprised, didn't he try out for the Greek olympic team and only made it on the under 20 team or something?

 

[Floridagators13]

so stupid man.. why not wait another year or two and play with the big boys.

 

[FLAGator]

 

[CaliZona_Gator]

this stings

 

[Leakfan12]

I hope those Greeks give him a rude awakening :gun_bandana:.

 

[leakbrewergator]

I have no ill will towards him. I wish him all the luck overseas. Hopefully he can hone his skills a little more and make it to the NBA in the next few years or so.

 

[FLAGator]

He will do well in that league and as a result will increase the interest in him by the NBA.

 

[MahxFahn]

Calathes signed a two-year contract with an option for a third year that could pay him a total of $3.5 million, but that doesn't mean he can't be drafted.

The Panathinaikos contract is a form of insurance for Calathes: He might be drafted anywhere from the middle of the first round to the middle of the second round but he has guaranteed himself a payday similar to that of a lottery pick. The deal might even have boosted his stock for NBA teams that don't need a young player this season.

Any team is free to draft Calathes and retain his rights in perpetuity.
......................
Calathes, who had last-minute workouts with Cleveland and Washington this week, has suddenly turned himself into one of the biggest wild cards in the draft.

"If the team is looking for a player for next year, then the buyout thing makes him less attractive," Ekstrand said. But, he added, "this is not the NBA draft of the 1980s, where every pick is somebody you're hoping will come in and improve your team next season. With (Calathes), there's just so much more to this than meets the eye, so many variables."

More HERE..