# Walter Clayton Jr.

Walter Marterry Clayton Jr. (born March 6, 2003) is an American college basketball player for the Florida Gators of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). He previously played for the Iona Gaels.

## Early life and high school career

Clayton grew up in Lake Wales, Florida and initially attended Lake Wales High School, where he played football and basketball. He averaged 17.5 points, five rebounds, and 3.2 assists as a sophomore. Clayton transferred to Bartow High School after his sophomore year. He averaged 15.4 points, 4.3 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.3 steals per game during his first season at Bartow as the Yellow Jackets won the Florida Class 6A state championship. Clayton committed to playing college basketball for Iona over offers from East Carolina, Florida A&M, Charleston, Stetson, and James Madison.
Clayton was considered a better college prospect in football and began playing the sport as a freshman in high school at the urging of his childhood friend, Gervon Dexter. He had offers to play football from Florida, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Nebraska, and West Virginia.

## College career

Clayton averaged 7.3 points per game during his freshman season at Iona. He was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Player of the Year as a sophomore after averaging 16.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game during the regular season. After the season, Clayton entered the NCAA transfer portal.
Clayton ultimately transferred to Florida. He also had considered transferring to St. John's and playing for his former Iona head coach, Rick Pitino.
In his first season at Florida, Clayton averaged 17.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.6 assists and was honored as Second-Team All-SEC. He played an instrumental role in getting the Gators to the SEC Tournament Championship for the first time in 10 years and the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 3 years. Despite the loss, Clayton had 33 points in a historic performance against Colorado in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
After the 2023-2024 season, Clayton declared for the NBA Draft. However, he ended up withdrawing from the draft and returning to Florida for his senior season. It was during this season that Clayton had one of the best individual seasons in Florida basketball history. He led Florida to a 27-4 record in the regular season while averaging 17.2 points, 4.3 assists, and 3.8 rebounds. During this season, Clayton led Florida to wins over No. 1 Tennessee and at No. 1 Auburn, which was the first time Florida had ever beaten a No. 1 on the road. He also helped lead Florida to its best overall record and SEC record in 11 years. For his efforts, Clayton was widely praised for helping lead the restoration of Florida basketball, which had not experienced that level of success in more than a decade. After the regular season, Clayton was honored as First-Team All-SEC.

## Career statistics

| * | Led NCAA Division I |

### College

| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| 2021–22 | Iona | 32 | 4 | 16.1 | .434 | .357 | .787 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 7.3 |
| 2022–23 | Iona | 32 | 31 | 30.4 | .455 | .431 | .953* | 4.3 | 3.2 | 1.8 | 0.6 | 16.8 |
| 2023–24 | Florida | 36 | 36 | 31.0 | .432 | .365 | .877 | 3.6 | 2.6 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 17.6 |
| 2024–25 | Florida | 30 | 30 | 32.4 | .441 | .364 | .852 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 17.2 |
| Career | Career | 130 | 101 | 27.5 | .441 | .379 | .875 | 3.4 | 2.9 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 14.8 |