Florida has now added a third member to its 2020 class within the past eight days. Niels Lane, a top-70 guard based out of New Jersey, gave his verbal commitment to the Gators on Tuesday, he told Rivals.com.
Lane discussed his decision with Rivals.com. “I went to campus twice and both times I connected with Coach (Mike) White and the rest of the staff and they were my first offer that started off the AAU season so they were the first school to really believe in my talents and believe in what I can do,” he said. “After I got the Florida offer, I received a flurry of other offers so they saw what I could do and really noticed me and I really noticed that.”
The four-star guard chose Florida over Miami, Providence, Texas and UConn. He now sits as the 63rd best prospect nationally compared to being slotted outside of the Rivals150 entirely last season. He is valued for his toughness and size in the backcourt. The 6-foot-5 guard is a great athlete that can defend, playmake and score, and should be an immediate plug-in once he enrolls next fall.
“I think that I fit really well with their culture and especially on the floor. Coach White wants me to play all three guard positions which I think I am very capable of,” Lane stated. “I think that I can help the team out at all three spots and they really value my defense which I take a lot of pride in. They also really value how I score the ball and also distribute.”
Lane was a fine producer on the Nike circuit this summer. While his jump shot remains a work in progress, he is capable of filling up the box score. He posted per-game averages of 12.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists with the Team Final program.
Florida now sits with three 2020 commitments. Their two high school recruits can be found within the Rivals150 as Lane will be joined by Samson Ruzhentsev next fall. Osayi Osifo, a junior college standout in the frontcourt, committed to UF last Monday.
