Florida bolsters its offense with addition of Canyon Barry
About five decades after Rick Barry starred at the University of Miami, the NBA hall of famer’s youngest son has passed on the chance to follow in his father’s footsteps.
Coveted College of Charleston transfer Canyon Barry announced Monday that he has chosen Florida over the Hurricanes and a handful of other major-conference suitors.
Barry, a 6-foot-6 rising senior, has one year of eligibility remaining and will be able to play right away for the Gators next season. He is a significant addition for a Florida program looking to rebound after missing the NCAA tournament the past two years.
Before a shoulder injury sidelined him for the final two months of the 2015-16 season, Barry was averaging 19.7 points per game for a College of Charleston team that was 9-4 with him in the lineup and defeated LSU last December. He never shot more than 40.2 percent from the field in his three seasons with the Cougars, however, his efficiency should improve at Florida since he will not have to shoulder such a heavy burden.
At Florida, there’s no guarantee Barry will even start, though he will definitely have the chance to play a big role regardless.
Sophomore-to-be Kevaughn Allen is Florida’s leading returning scorer and the likely starter at shooting guard next season. Barry should compete with Devin Robinson and Justin Leon for playing time at small forward and should also see playing time spelling Allen at shooting guard.
Florida was a poor shooting team last season and it’s losing leading scorer Dorian Finney-Smith to graduation. The addition of Barry should help solve that problem.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
