Player Bio

Daniel Gafford was born in El Dorado, Arkansas in 1998 to Wayne Gafford and Teresa Frazier. He starred at El Dorado High School as a senior with averages of 17.4 points, 16.0 rebounds and 7.7 blocks. The big man also led his club that season to a 28-5 record and a spot in the 6A State Final. Gafford committed to the University of Arkansas and was ranked as the No. 11 power forward in the country heading into college. He briefly played football in high school but focused solely on basketball by 10th grade. You can follow Gafford on Instagram (@big.dandan). When Gafford joined the Razorbacks in 2017-18, the team had a trio of well-established guards but he needed some frontcourt power. The 6-foot-11 forward came off the bench for the first eight games. When coach Mike Anderson put him in the starting lineup against Minnesota, the freshman responded. He went 8-for-8 from the field on his way to 16 points while adding seven rebounds and six blocks in the win. Gafford had three double-doubles and helped the Razorbacks into the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season. He provided seven points, five rebounds and three blocks in the first-round loss to Butler. Gafford decided to return to Arkansas for his sophomore season and improved his scoring average from 11.8 points to 16.9 points per game. He also led the Razorbacks with 8.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks. He had 10 double-doubles, including 29 points and 16 rebounds in the regular-season finale win over Alabama. Following an SEC Tournament loss to Florida, the sophomore forward did not play in the NIT in order to prepare for the 2019 NBA Draft.