Walter Clayton Jr. finally got his first real pop with the Dallas Mavericks, and it came in a familiar place: Florida.
With Dallas in Miami on Monday to face the Heat, the former Florida guard delivered his strongest showing since joining the Mavericks. Clayton Jr. scored 15 points, grabbed four rebounds and handed out four assists in 17 minutes, going 6-of-7 from the floor, 2-of-2 from 3-point range and 1-of-1 at the line.
He did most of the damage late, too. Clayton Jr. scored seven of his points in the fourth quarter and gave Dallas the kind of composed, timely production Gator fans know well.
“Man, I just feel like we just locked in during the timeouts talking to each other. I feel like we rebounded the ball great,” Clayton Jr. said, via Grant Afseth of Dallas Sports Journal.
"And we were just physical. I think we came out and played our brand of basketball.
It worked for us.”
The Mavericks also got a strong endorsement from Cooper Flagg, who praised Clayton Jr.’s impact after the game.
"Walt was great,” former Duke star and current Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg said. “Obviously he hasn’t been with us for very long, but for him to just step up tonight, 6-of-7 from the field, but I thought just his intensity and the way, I mean, plus-22, like for him to go out there and just play really, really hard and unselfish basketball and just really give to the team in every single way. I thought it was a really big step for our team.”
Clayton Jr.’s path to this point has moved fast. The Memphis Grizzlies waived him, and he quickly landed with Dallas after stints with the Utah Jazz and Grizzlies. For now, it looks like he may have found a spot to settle in.
Before the NBA, Clayton Jr. was the engine of Florida’s 2025 national title run. He finished his Gators career averaging 17.9 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.
His college résumé stretches well beyond that championship run. At Iona, he earned 2021-22 MAAC All-Freshman Team honors, then broke out the next season with 2022-23 All-MAAC 1st Team recognition, a 2023 All-MAAC Tournament team nod and the 2022-23 MAAC Player of the Year award. After transferring to Florida, he added 2023-24 All-SEC 2nd Team and 2024 All-SEC Tournament honors, then capped his SEC career with a huge 2024-25 season that brought All-SEC 1st Team honors, 2025 SEC Tournament MVP and a spot on the 2025 All-SEC Tournament Team.
That final college season also pushed him onto the national stage. Clayton Jr. earned consensus 1st Team All-America honors, with 1st Team selections from the AP, NABC, Sporting News, USBWA and John R.
Wooden Award. He was also a finalist for the Naismith Trophy and Wooden Award after appearing on all of their preseason, midseason and late-season watch lists.
He wrapped his run with selections to the 2025 NCAA Tournament All-Region and 2025 NCAA All-Tournament teams, and was named the 2025 NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player.
In Other News...
Florida Still Has A Guard Question Heading Into Miami
Boogie Flands absence for Floridas exhibition against Stetson gave the Gators an early look at how the backcourt might have to adapt if the starting point guard is unavailable. Denzel Aberdeen slid over to point guard, Urban Klavar moved into the starting lineup at shooting guard, and Florida still handled business in an 85-68 win, with Klavar and Aberdeen carrying much of the scoring load.
Even with the result in hand, the setup left the bigger question hanging as the Gators shift their attention to the regular-season opener against Miami. Todd Golden praised the way his team performed, but the illness that sidelined Fland added another layer to Floridas guard rotation picture, and the staff now has a short window to sort out how it wants the backcourt arranged when the games start counting for real. [Read more 🡒]
Florida-Georgia Just Lost The Rivalry Feeling Fans Loved Most
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The move also comes with a 50-50 ticket split between the schools, and the matchup is already mapped out to land in Tampa in 2027 before returning to Jacksonville through 2031. Even with a path back to the river city, the rotation underscores how much is lost when Florida and Georgia are not meeting in the place that gave the rivalry its distinct personality, and it has plenty of fans and former players thinking about what used to make the weekend feel bigger than just another SEC game. [Read more 🡒]
Floridas Best Shot Vs Georgia Comes Down To One Brutal Test
With Florida and Georgia heading into another rivalry meeting at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the spotlight is on a familiar kind of uncertainty for the Gators: quarterback play. ESPN analyst Greg McElroy expects No. 3 Georgia to bounce back from its recent loss, while Florida is still sorting out its own answer under center, with Jon Sumrall yet to name a starter between Aaron Philo and Tramell Jones Jr. It is the kind of week where every practice rep matters and every hint from the coaches gets parsed for more than it probably should.
Georgias quarterback situation adds another layer, even if the Bulldogs appear to be in better shape overall. Kirby Smart said Gunner Stockton dealt with a shoulder stinger after the last game but did not show concussion symptoms, which at least eases one concern for a team trying to steady itself after a loss. For Florida, though, the bigger issue is simpler and more pressing: finding the quarterback who can handle the moment in a game where one rough stretch can quickly tilt the whole afternoon. [Read more 🡒]