Last year was far from conventional for Florida's Urban Klavzar.
Before coming to Gainesville, the 6-foot-1 guard from Slovenia played overseas in Spain for Real Madrid and Universidad Católica de Murcia Club de Baloncesto.
During the summer of 2024, he represented his country at the 2024 U20 EuroBasket competition, averaging 16.1 points per game and shooting 38% from three.
Klavzar arrived in Florida expecting to make an immediate impact on the court. However, because he earned money by playing basketball in Spain, he encountered eligibility issues with the NCAA.
As a result, the Slovenian missed Florida's first three games of the season and was forced to declare as a sophomore, losing a year of eligibility. Once he appeared on the court, Klavzar struggled from three to start his Gator career. But as the season progressed, he found his stride in crucial games.
Now, entering his second season in Gainesville, Klavzar looks to take advantage of having a full season with the team. He is expected to be one of the top scoring options off the bench for the Gators entering 2025-26.
"I feel more comfortable because I know how everything goes now," Klavzar said. "I definitely feel more comfortable because I know the environment."
When Todd Golden and his staff signed Klavzar, they brought in a player with different experience than a typical transfer or high school recruit.
The 21-year-old joined the team after two years of professional basketball experience overseas, one of which he scored 10 points in 23 minutes in his lone game for Real Madrid.
As the season started, Todd Golden was without his newest acquisition. Game after game, questions lingered about whether Klavzar would play for UF.
Klavzar made his debut three games into the season after he was cleared by the NCAA. His first game came against FSU on Nov. 15, and he played five minutes, converting his lone field goal attempt.
Despite the relief of being cleared, it took a while before Klavzar fully transitioned into Florida’s style of play and began to make an impact. He missed 12 of his first 13 attempts from beyond the arc while struggling to find time on the court.
"The players were really athletic compared to where I played last years," he said. “And of course, the players who got drafted were really, really talented.”
However, Klavzar got his chance once conference play began due to injuries to starting guards Walter Clayton Jr. and Alijah Martin. During this stretch, he had his best performance during his first season.
Against Oklahoma, Klavzar played 23 minutes and shot 2/4 from three, finishing the contest with 10 points, his highest as a sophomore.
When the two senior guards returned, Klavzar still played a key role, coming off the bench to provide the Gators with his ability to hit shots from deep. In Florida's upset win at No. 1 Auburn, Klavzar made all three of his three-pointers, including two in the span of 13 seconds.
However, Klavzar's time for the rest of the season was limited because he lacked the ability to create his own shot compared to the other guards off the bench, such as Denzel Aberdeen. The 6-foot-1 guard also lacked on the defensive end, especially in terms of his physicality.
As a result, he did not see the court when the Gators reached the Final Four. And before that, he had just two minutes in the Sweet 16 matchup against UConn and only three minutes against Maryland in the Elite Eight.
Learning from a distance, Klavzar comes into this season understanding what it takes to repeat as national champions.
"We know we're the champs, but we have to look after each game individually," he said. "We lost a lot of talent, of course, in guard play, but that's why we got to step up now."
One thing that Klavzar said he's focused on is his physicality. His smaller frame was one of the key reasons he struggled for minutes during his first year with the program.
However, going against Florida guard Boogie Fland — whom senior center Micah Handlogten called "a defensive menace" — and Xavian Lee, Klavzar has improved.
"I got a lot of pounds up and I'm trying to get better defensively," he said. "I know how physical our conference is, especially the guards are really physical and fast, so you got to be ready."
Besides spending time in the weight room, Klavzar has been a mentor for younger players on the team.
The junior said he spent the summer living with the two freshman guards, Alex Lloyd and CJ Ingram, in their dorm to create a bond and help them feel comfortable.
"At the start, they were really quiet, but now, now we talk more and more every day," Klavzar said. "I just feel like they're like everybody here, so they don't really feel like they're freshmen."
As the Gators prepare to open their season in Las Vegas against Arizona on Nov. 3, Klavzar's teammates said they've been impressed with his work in practice.
"He's just gotten so much better," Handlogten said. "He showed flashes of it at the game at Auburn, showing up and hitting those clutch shots; he's just working to build on it this year."
Contact Jeffrey Serber at Jserber@alligator.org. Follow him on X @JeffreySerber.
Jeffrey is the Fall 2025 enterprise and men's basketball beat reporter and a second-year journalism sports & media major. In his free time, he enjoys hanging out with friends and family, and rooting for the Miami sports teams.
