Florida and Duke Continue to Be Better Than Any Other CBB Teams

Whether somebody believes Florida or Duke is the best team in the country is up to them, but it's very obvious that the Gators are among the top two teams in America. 

Whether that's because head coach Todd Golden does what he does on both ends of the floor and has his guys ready to play night in and night out, or because of the veteran-led talent Florida has in Thomas Haugh, Denzel Aberdeen, Alex Condon, Boogie Fland, and many others.

Whatever anybody wants to say, this Florida team is elite from top to bottom, which is why it doesn't come as a surprise that it's still the No. 1-ranked team in the AP poll. 

While the AP poll currently has the Gators as the best team in America, ESPN believes that it's the second-best team in the country behind Duke, and that's not a crazy take at all.

“The Gators' frontcourt is, in a word, awesome. Thomas Haugh, Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu are all big, experienced and national champions. The key will be whether the Florida backcourt can match the strength up front. 

“The Gators' guards were the engine that led Todd Golden to a title two years ago. Certainly, Boogie Fland, Urban Klavzar and the returning Denzel Aberdeen form a very good backcourt and are worthy of a Final Four. This team's engine will be inside and on the glass, and the guards need to be efficient and healthy to challenge,” Jay Bilas wrote.

As Bilas touched on here, there are some questions that Florida is going to have to answer, but we can say the same thing about every team in college basketball, including Duke.

Duke looks to be a very good team from top to bottom as well, but if it deals with an injury or two, things are going to look much different than they currently do.

As for Florida, I do think there are a couple of avenues in which it won't be a great team, but again, that's only going to be because of a lack of health. 

If Florida is able to stay healthy throughout this entire season, I expect Golden and his squad to be among the best in the country day in and day out, and have a real chance of winning a national title.

Anything short of that would be viewed as a disappointment, even if that's unfair to say for a college team.

Florida will be tasked with many difficult games throughout the regular season that will give us a better indication of what it is come March.