Florida basketball: Gorjok Gak out indefinitely with dislocated shoulder

Basketball

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Image Credit: UAA / Tim Casey

The injury woes continue for Florida Gators redshirt junior center Gorjok Gak, who will be out of action indefinitely after dislocating his shoulder during practice on Tuesday. Gak, who missed the entire 2018-19 campaign with a knee injury, was working his way back and getting ready to come off the bench for the Gators this season after being cleared this summer.

“I feel horrible for him,” head coach Mike White told the team’s website. ‘Gorjok was playing his [best] basketball since he’s been here.”

Though Gak did not put up gaudy numbers while on the court for Florida — averaging 2.0 points and 2.1 rebounds — his size and presence in the frontcourt was a key part of the Gators’ rotation. The team suffered significantly last season while not having him active, and Gak likely would have seen double-digit minutes each game had he been healthy.

It is not known how long Gak — one of only five returning players from last year’s team — will be out rehabbing from the shoulder injury, but he will be an important piece of Florida basketball when he does return.

The Gators did beef up their post presence in the offseason, adding graduate transfer forward Kerry Blackshear Jr. to go along with junior F Dontay Bassett, freshman F Omar Payne and freshman C Jason Jitoboh. Still, Gak likely would have been second or third in that rotation depending what is called for on the court.