UCF’s Johnny Dawkins discusses Knights’ offseason moves

Walk into the office of UCF men’s basketball coach Johnny Dawkins and one of the first things that jumps out from the treasure trove of memorabilia is a two-toned basketball sitting on his desk.

The ball, painted half white and featuring the 2026 NCAA Basketball Tournament logo, is a new addition to Dawkins’ collection and a reminder of the Knights’ recent return to March Madness.

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It had been almost eight seasons since UCF last earned an NCAA Tourney bid in 2018-19. Still, the Knights (21-12, 9-9 Big 12) found a way back despite facing the challenges of playing with an entirely new roster — 13 newcomers — and navigating through a difficult Big 12 schedule.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock in the first-round loss to UCLA, the realization of its finality began to settle in.

“It’s always tough,” Dawkins recently told the Orlando Sentinel. “You work so hard for those moments and in that tournament, there are no do-overs. You either do it and keep going or it’s over and the season ends right there.”

Unfortunately, there wasn’t much time for reminiscing because a new clock begins, this one counting down until the start of the 2026-27 season.

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“You come to the reality that it’s over and now what?” said Dawkins. “For us, that’s what now becomes immediate. What’s your roster going to look like for the next year? Are you going to retain most of these guys or are they going elsewhere? You start going right into that mode.”

Dawkins and his staff knew they would have to replace several key contributors from last season, including senior starting guards Themus Fulks and Riley Kugel, starting forward Jamichael Stillwell, reserve forward Devan Cambridge and reserve guard George Beale Jr.

Starting small forward Jordan Burks and guards Chris Johnson, Kris Parker, Zach Johnson, and Poopha Warakulnukroh entered the transfer portal.

John Bol, who started every game at center, returned, as did reserve guards Carmelo Pacheco and Tanner Jones and reserve center…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/ucf-johnny-dawkins-discusses-knights-171600071.html

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Publish date : 2026-07-10 17:16:00

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