5-star power forward Yohan Traore commits to LSU
LSU does it again and this time in a BIG way. Yohan Traore, a 6-foot-10 power forward, has committed to the LSU Tigers for the class of 2022, he tells On3.
Traore joins five-star forward and McDonald’s All-American Julian Phillips, along with four-star wing Devin Ree.
The On3 Consensus – a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies – ranks Traore as the 19th-best prospect in the country.
On3’s evaluators are even higher on him, ranking him the No. 10 overall player, and No. 1 power forward in the 2022 On3 Top 100.
LSU seals the deal
Traore’s recruitment has been fairly quiet over the last few months. He took official visits to Texas Tech, Michigan, Memphis, and Kansas in September and into October of last year.
However, much of the time since has been trying to figure out which school would receive his fifth and final official visit. At first, UCLA and Texas were the frontrunners, before shifting to a pair of Tigers in the SEC – Auburn and LSU.
Ultimately, the boys in Baton Rouge secured Traore’s final official “secret” visit and the highly-touted big man traveled down south to visit the campus last week. The five-star prospect was in attendance for the Tigers win over Texas A&M on Wednesday. That game and visit sold Traore on LSU, convincing him where he wanted to play his college ball.
“Man, just the atmosphere at the game,” Traore explained. “It was crazy. Just being around the players, the coach, the coaching staff, it was just crazy. I just felt like it was the next move.”
Traore’s relationship with Will Wade was the difference maker
“I have a great relationship with coach (Will) Wade,” Traore said. “We can talk about everything, basketball or just life. He gives me a lot of advice. He’s always calling me, texting me. He was always coming to games and he’s been recruiting me for a long time now, since the summer. I really think he will be able to push me and help me reach my goal. I’m really excited, man, I can’t wait.”
College over pro
The professional route has always been a viable option for Traore, even including the NBL in his list of top choices in August. The Overtime Elite league and the NBA G-League were both interested in Traore’s services, before making the decision to choose the college route in December.
“I just didn’t want to rush it,” Traore said of going pro. “Not to say I wasn’t ready, but I wanted to experience the college life so that’s really why I wanted to go to college.”
Scouting Report on Traore
On3’s National Recruiting Analyst Jamie Shaw had this to say about Yohan Traore:
“Traore is a strong framed forward with a lot of explosiveness. He moves his feet well, switchable with good timing from the weak side. Traore is comfortable facing the basket where he can knock down a three or rip through and get to the rim. One who continues to get better each time out and there is still some upside to go with tightening of his overall skill set.”