On the heels of its greatest recruiting class in history, Tennessee basketball has a lot of work to do for 2022. The Vols have one commitment right now, four-star guard B.J. Edwards, and they desperately need help in the post. Rick Barnes may be in the process of fixing that.
UT made the top 10 for Arizona post player Yohan Traore. Coming out of Dream City Christian School in Glendale, Ariz., Traore is listed as a five-star power forward on Rivals and a four-star center on 247Sports and ESPN. He stands in the range of 6’9″ to 6’11” and weighs in the range of 220 to 230 pounds.
Joining Tennessee basketball on Traore’s list are the Memphis Tigers, Louisville Cardinals, UCLA Bruins, LSU Tigers, Oklahoma State Cowboys, Michigan Wolverines, Utah Utes and Texas Tech Red Raiders. The NBL in Oceania is also a 10th option. He announced all the options on his Instagram page on Friday.
UT’s current post situation doesn’t seem too bad. However, John Fulkerson will be gone after this year. Five-star power forward Branton Huntley-Hatfield is also expected to be gone. Although Jonas Aidoo, Olivier Nkamhoua, Uros Plavsic and Handje Tamba should develop enough to pick up the slack, Barnes will need more competition there if both guys leave next yearr.
Traore could certainly provide that competition. The disparities in his ratings seems to be based on his growth. If he truly does get up to 6’11” and has the finesse to play power forward, not just center, he could be a five-star across the board.
Even if that’s not the case, though, the Vols would land another very solid post player. That would keep the program rolling after this year, which is expected to be historic in nature for UT given the returning talent and the added recruits.
There are no predictions yet for Traore on the Rivals Future Cast or 247Sports Crystal Ball. However, Tennessee basketball is a plurality favorite on the Rivals Fan Future Cast. That may not mean much, but it suggests the Vols are very much in play for this kid, so watch out.