Thomas Haugh pops off the floor & the screen
The Gators forward is on the older side for a prospect, but Thomas Haugh's development on the ball was on full display in Florida's season opener. PLUS quick hits on five more prospects who impressed!
The numbers speak for themselves: 27 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals. That’s the season debut that newly-crowned NCAA Champion Thomas Haugh put together in Florida’s opening night loss to Arizona.
The performance, despite the loss, is a delightful sign for Haugh. After the graduation of the Gators’ championship backcourt of Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin and Will Richard—all of whom are now in the NBA—Florida will need someone among a deep group of returners to stand up. Haugh seems fit for the task.
Last season, due to the talent of Florida’s guards, Haugh was held primarily to an off-ball role. His 17.6% usage rating was a 46th percentile blemish on an incredible defensive profile, highlighted by hustle and IQ. He rebounded, scored in transition, guarded up and down the lineup, kept the ball moving and was passable from beyond the arc.
It was enough to get him potential first-round buzz as a 2025 NBA Draft prospect before withdrawing and returning to Florida. Though what remained to be seen was if he could play with the ball. It’s just a one-game sample size, but Haugh posted a 24.0% usage in his season debut, third on his team as the clear most effective player.
To be transparent, it’s highly unlikely Haugh is ever a first or second option in the NBA. He’s older at 22 years old and therefore closer to his athletic peak, with less time for the skill to catch up alongside it. However, what he’s doing now as Florida’s first option will translate to being an elite role player at the NBA level.
It starts with Haugh’s tools. At 6 feet, 9 inches, Haugh has center-like size at the collegiate level, and it’s a role he could likely excel at. Haugh’s burst, especially on his drives, however, is what allows him to work on the wing.
His first step is only matched—if not exceeded—by his second step, consistently blowing by defenders with quick moves to the basket. Haugh isn’t always initiating, but making a quick decision or move towards the basket as soon as the ball touches his hands helps to maximize these tools.
Below is a sequence of back-to-back possessions for Haugh. On the first, he catches and effortlessly blows by Arizona’s Koa Peat, getting deep into the paint, drawing attention, and dumping it off to Rueben Chinyelu for the easy hook. On the next, in a transition opportunity off Haugh’s own contest and board, Haugh catches, drawing a closeout, gives a quick head-fake and gets to the rim for a foul.
Haugh overwhelmed Arizona on plays like this. He drew eight fouls on the Wildcats, shooting 14 free throws, most of them coming with smaller or slower players trying to stay in front of him. That’s largely because Haugh was putting consistent pressure on the rim when he wasn’t being fouled.
Haugh took nine shots at the rim against Arizona, five in the half-court and dunking two (both in the half-court). Most of those looks were created off the ball, another NBA-ready trait of Haugh’s, but when he’s allowed to drive to the rim unscathed, it looks a lot like this.
Haugh’s dynamicism as a cutter was also on full display. His tools are helpful in that regard, but it’s his timing and IQ that allow him to use those tools to find windows for his handlers, sliding in to score easy baskets.
Golden and his staff know this, and ran plenty of sets to get Haugh moving into open space off the ball. Take this one below from the start of the game. Off the keeper between Boogie Fland and Alex Condon, Fland runs to the corner as if to set a pin down for Urban Klavzar into a pistol action. Instead, Fland spaces and Klavzar cuts, setting a pin-down for Haugh on the weak-side block, who then runs to the strong-side for the easy dunk.
These tools Haugh is starting to show have blossomed into him being an on-ball weapon for Florida early on—a huge addition to his arsenal as he’s always known how to use them on defense and as a cutter.
Haugh’s defensive production won’t blow your mind. Last season, his Hakeem percentage (as dubbed by CBBAnalytics.com, denoting combined steal and block percentages) of 5.1% ranked in the 57th percentile last year, though his energy and hustle were, and still are, elite.
Haugh crashes the glass, fights for loose balls, draws offensive fouls, and gets deflections. He won Florida, and their dynamic 2024-25 offense, more possessions on the defensive end with his energy, and ultimately raised the team’s ceiling to a Championship level because of it.
It’s a new cast, Haugh is going to be thrust into more of an offensive role, and already has. If he can keep his defensive production at where it was last year, it’s a testament to his mindset and conditioning towards the game, and he’s already shown that it’s still there with two steals and a block against Arizona.
The big question, however, is the shooting. Haugh hit just 32.4% on 3s last year, weighing down his offensive efficiency overall. That number includes a less-than-stellar 30.6% (22 of 72) on catch-and-shoot 3s.
Haugh will need to improve his shot for his skills to translate fully to the NBA. That much is true. His mechanics and willingness to pull the trigger will need to improve for his driving game to be unlocked. Cutting lanes will be clogged if defenders sag off him, and any on-ball equity will be weighed down if he can only score at a single level. Yet, all is not lost.
Haugh’s mechanics are stiff, though not unsalvageable, as shown by his efficiency around the rim and from the free-throw line. Since the start of his sophomore season, Haugh has shot his free throws at an 80% clip; not mind-blowing, but a sign that there are diamonds beneath the rough.
Haugh isn’t perfect, but he’s popping off the screen with Florida right now, in large part due to the tools that allow him to pop off the floor physically. Haugh has skills that will translate, tools that stick out, and rough spots to sand out. All of it together looks like a surefire first-round pick come time for the 2026 NBA Draft.
But wait, there’s more! Below this paywall are quick hit evaluations on the season debuts of five prospects—Koa Peat, Christian Anderson, Trevon Brazile, Cameron Carr and Khani Rooths—who impressed me.
If you’re interested, subscribe for just $5/month!
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Prospects & Concepts to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.