Tag: Badara Diakite

Iowa men’s basketball signs top 100 recruit to 2025 class

Boom! Iowa basketball signed top-100 recruit Badara Diakite to its 2025 class.

Iowa men’s basketball received tremendous news Monday morning as top-100 recruit Badara Diakite signed a scholarship agreement to join the program for the 2025-26 season.

Diakite, a 6-foot-10, 190 pound center and forward from Hartford, Conn., is listed as the No. 72 recruit in ESPN Top 100 rankings, the No. 122 player nationally by On3 (11th-best center and No. 3 player in Connecticut), and is rated as a four-star prospect by Rivals.

In addition to Iowa, Diakite also had offers from Boston College, UConn, Missouri, Washington and Penn State but only chose to schedule an official visit with the Hawkeyes. During his junior year at South Kent School, Diakite averaged 10 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.

When asked why he chose the Hawkeyes, he mentioned his trust in head coach Fran McCaffery’s ability to help grow his game.

“I chose the University of Iowa because of the coaches’ communication in the recruiting process and because of Coach McCaffery. I feel he understands me as a person and sees my basketball talents to be used in ways I can grow my game while helping the team win,” Diakite said.

In terms of McCaffery’s perspective on Diakite, he praised his 3-point shooting ability, versatility, and ability to guard any position on the court as attributes that can help the Hawkeyes moving forward.

“Badara is an extremely talented, versatile player with a great feel for the game,” said McCaffery. “He can stretch the floor with his 3-point shooting, he can guard any position one through five and he is an even better person. We’re thrilled to have him as part of the Hawkeye family.”

Badara was the only recruit to sign with Iowa in the early signing period that ended on Nov. 20. The spring signing period opens on April 16, 2025 and closes on May 21, 2025.

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4-star center announces commitment to Iowa basketball

Boom! Iowa basketball picked up its first commit in the 2025 class as four-star center Badara Diakite announced his pledge to the Hawks.

The Iowa Hawkeyes are on the board in their 2025 recruiting class.

Four-star, class of 2025 center Badara Diakite announced his commitment to Iowa basketball on Tuesday afternoon.

The 6-foot-10, 205 pound center is out of South Kent High School in Hartford, Conn. Diakite chose the Hawkeyes over offers from Boston College, Connecticut, Missouri, Penn State and Washington.

ESPN ranks Diakite as a four-star talent, as the No. 72 player nationally, as the No. 11 power forward and as the No. 2 player from Connecticut.

Rivals also rates Diakite as a four-star commit. According to Rivals, Diakite is the country’s No. 127 player and the No. 12 center.

Both 247Sports and On3 regard Diakite as a three-star commit. On3 ranks Diakite as the No. 22 center, while 247Sports rates Diakite as the nation’s No. 32 center. Both rank Diakite as the No. 3 player from Connecticut.

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Diakite took his official visit to Iowa on Oct. 11 for the “Hawkeyes from Downtown” festivities, which served as the unofficial kickoff to the Iowa men’s and women’s basketball seasons.

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Diakite joins class of 2026 guard Navon Shabazz as recent Iowa basketball commits. Shabazz committed to Iowa on Sept. 16 and chose the Hawkeyes over offers from

As a sophomore, Shabazz helped lead Assumption to a class 3A state championship. The 6-foot-3 guard averaged 14.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game while shooting 43.8% from the field and 34% from deep. Shabazz transferred to Iowa United Prep in Des Moines for the 2024-25 school year.

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