Florida State basketball had a rocky start under first-year head basketball coach Luke Loucks, but they started to recollect themselves after an embarrassing home loss to North Carolina State. There were some fans who didn't know if Loucks had what it took to be successful in Tallahassee.
However, Florida State won 11 of its last 15 games, where it lost to the number one-ranked Duke Blue Devils in the ACC Tournament. The Seminoles have a ton to be proud of and look to building the future with their top-ten recruiting class.
Coach Loucks loves to play fast offensively, get out in transition, and shoot a ton of perimeter shots. This is the playstyle of many NBA teams nowadays. This makes sense since Loucks was a former assistant coach with the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors before taking the job at Florida State.
Luke Loucks continues his hard work in the transfer portal with the pick-up of Cincinnati wing Shon Abaev
Florida State landed Cincinnati freshman wing Shon Abaev in the transfer portal on Monday afternoon.
NEWS: Cincinnati transfer wing Shon Abaev has committed to Florida State, sources told @On3.
— Joe Tipton (@JoeTipton) April 13, 2026
The 6-7 freshman is a former top-30 recruit and McDonald’s All-American. https://t.co/3hNfDLYCbA pic.twitter.com/vAqJFCEmvh
Abaev is listed at 6'7" and will be a useful weapon for the Seminoles' offense. He was a former five-star prospect from Broward County, Florida. The Cincinnati wing averaged 7 points per game with 2.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists with the Bearkats during the 2025 season (according to ESPN Stats and Information).
Six of his first ten games of the year included him scoring 10 or more points, but as the season progressed, he only had one double-digit scoring performance. It was likely that the true freshman saw his role diminish and wanted a bigger opportunity.
Luke Loucks will have to depend on Abaev to knock down perimeter shots in 2026 for the Seminoles, but he shot 25.7% from three-point range. That number has to improve if he wants to stay on the floor.
Transfers like Robert McCray V, Alex Steen, Chauncey Wiggins, Lajae Jones, Martin Somerville, and Kobe Magee all helped Luke Loucks and Florida State have a winning record in 2025. The Seminoles are hoping for a similar impact in 2026 with Shon Abaev.