Jamir Watkins has opted to return to Florida State for another season after missing out on the opportunity to enter the 2024 NBA Draft.
Now, the senior guard is ready to help Florida State improve on last season’s 17-16 record and be a contender in the ACC.
The journey begins Monday as Watkins and the Seminoles host Northern Kentucky in their season opener.
Florida State head coach Leonard Hamilton, who begins his 23rd season on the bench with the Seminoles, said Watkins has taken big steps forward this season.
“He’s really gotten better at his perimeter shooting,” Hamilton told the Tallahassee Democrat. “I thought his defense in the second half energized the team. We just need everyone to be consistent with that type of effort.”
Watkins led the Seminoles in scoring last year with 15.6 points per game while knocking down 33 3-pointers. He is one of five seniors on the roster and is poised to be a leader.
“He calls out the players,” Hamilton said. “He took the next step in leadership that we wanted him to show to be successful.”
Northern Kentucky is once again projected to be one of the top mid-major programs in the country. The Scandinavians were picked third in the Horizon League and are coming off an 18-15 season.
Two of the team’s best players return in Sam Vinson and Trey Robinson, both preseason first-team All-Horizon League selections.
Robinson averaged 11.7 points and 7 rebounds last year, the best season of his career, and was the league’s Defensive Player of the Year two years ago. He’s about to reach 1,000 points as well, needing just 127 points to do so.
Vinson will also likely reach the 1,000-point mark. He is 92 points away from that milestone, and like Robinson, is a force on defense, ranking seventh all-time in steals in program history with 176.
The matchup between the Seminoles and Seagulls will be the first ever between the two programs.
– Media at the field level