NCAA Basketball: Analyzing 2021 5-star C Charles Bediako’s top 10 teams

Texas Longhorns

The magic just hasn’t been there for the Longhorns in recent years, despite signing Shaka Smart to replace a departing Rick Barnes. However, the Texas program has maintained one big quality during the transition: talented centers. Over the last decade the team has been a magnet for ‘paint cloggers,’ sending LaMarcus Aldridge, Dexter Pittman, Tristan Thompson, Myles Turner, Jarrett Allen, Mo Bamba and Jaxson Hayes to the NBA. Each excelled as defensive anchors for the Longhorns, while putting up double-digit points as the second or third-option offensively.

Bediako would be the next in-line to put up similar numbers and could have the chance to go one-and-done, as was the case will the aforementioned group of NBA players excluding Pittman and Aldridge. In this guard-heavy offense, he is still unlikely to find himself as the primary offensive option. If he still proves to be a tad raw in his skillset, his offensive opportunities will fall to 5th or 6th priority on the team like Jaxson Hayes saw. Otherwise, he will receive roughly 8.5-9.0 field goal attempts per game to prove himself.

Defensively, the Longhorns system sets up well for the big man. Smart uses 4 guards typically to guard the perimeter and allows a lot of downhill penetration to funnel towards their center. Bediako will have tons of chances to track layups from guards, as well as recovering to contest layups and dunks from post-players following a dump-off pass.

In terms of another player taking time away from Bediako at the center position, the breakout of sophomore center Will Baker will determine how productive he can be once he steps foot on campus. Baker has more stretch capability with his shooting than Bediako, but could find himself leaving after this season after receiving only limited minutes in 2019. Bediako would then be the best center on the roster and given all chances to excel as the Longhorns primary center option.