Kentucky Basketball guard Denzel Aberdeen has found his next home, committing to the Florida Gators on Friday, according to Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. Aberdeen returns to the school he spent his first three seasons at before suiting up for the Wildcats this past season.
Aberdeen, who has played four full seasons of college basketball, is applying for a fifth season of eligibility. He made the announcement on the first night the transfer portal opened.
While it looks like a long shot that Aberdeen will get one more season, Florida is obviously willing to take that chance, and it makes sense that’s the school that gives him the best chance to get that fifth season.
The likely argument for Florida will be that Aberdeen only appeared in 12 games as a true freshman in Gainesville and barely played. They’ll likely claim there was some sort of hardship that Aberdeen faced as to why that season shouldn’t count toward his eligibility clock.
But if that doesn’t work, the NCAA is considering allowing all players to play five full seasons within a five-year window. However, that may not go into effect until next season, so it’s far from a guarantee that Aberdeen will be playing college basketball again this fall.
Best of luck to Aberdeen, regardless of where he’s playing basketball next season!
