The switch portal has given every participant in faculty basketball the chance to turn into a free agent after each season, and that’s been a extremely worthwhile association for the choose few coveted by the largest manufacturers within the sport. Oumar Ballo is aware of it higher than anybody.
Ballo was a four-star, consensus top-100 recruit within the class of 2019 behind prime canines like Anthony Edwards and James Wiseman. He dedicated to Gonzaga, redshirted his freshman yr, and performed sparingly the Zags’ almost undefeated juggernaut in 2021. When assistant coach Tommy Lloyd was employed by lead Arizona, Ballo adopted. He’s been higher of the extra productive huge males within the nation every of the final two years as a bruising low publish scorer and rebounder who’s stout sufficient within the paint defensively.
Ballo has yet another season of eligibility as a result of each participant who was enrolled through the pandemic will get an additional “Covid yr.” He elected to go away Arizona and enter the switch portal, the place he was thought-about arguably the highest middle out there in a category that additionally contains former Indiana State huge man Robbie Avila. Ballo was going to an enormous goal for a faculty determined for a veteran huge man, and he discovered an ideal match on Tuesday afternoon.
Ballo dedicated to the Indiana Hoosiers. He reportedly acquired past one million greenback payday to do it.
Indiana had motive to be determined. The Hoosiers didn’t make the NCAA event this previous season regardless of being ranked No. 13 within the preseason polls. Indiana had no alternative for injured guard Xavier Johnson, had zero taking pictures, and simply appeared snakebitten all yr regardless of an enormous yr from Kel’el Ware. With Ware now off to be a primary spherical NBA draft choose, Indiana wanted to discover a prime middle to plug that gap in the event that they wished redemption in 2024-25. Ballo was their prized choose.
Indiana has already landed former Washington State guard Myles Rice within the portal. They’re anticipated to land Stanford guard Kanaan Carlyle subsequent. If it occurs, these three gamers would kind arguably the highest incoming switch class within the nation. There are additionally loads of interesting items nonetheless in Bloomington from final season, together with bouncy forwards Malik Reneau and Mackenzie Mgbako.
Goodman had mentioned on a podcast earlier this season that Indiana had about $4 million to work with in its NIL pool. Head coach Mike Woodson can’t afford one other down season, and he put that cash to good use. It’s too dangerous he misplaced out on a dedication from five-star wing Liam McNeeley, as a result of then IU would actually be cooking. Even nonetheless, this crew seems like a Huge Ten contender as soon as once more virtually in a single day — supplied Woodson can cobble collectively sufficient taking pictures.
It will have been onerous to think about even 5 years in the past a university basketball panorama the place a participant was transparently getting paid greater than a $1 million for a season, however that’s the brand new world of the game. The system is very nice for the highest of the highest. Indiana and Ballo simply proved that.
