Memphis Basketball: 3 takeaways from Emmanuel Akot choosing the Wildcats

As the weeks go on, we get further from last year’s NCAA Tournament and college basketball season and even nearer to the next one. We’re still just over two months removed from that Tournament, meaning there’s still plenty of time left before the next season begins. However, there’s still quite the flurry of activity in the Transfer Portal, including some pretty impressive names that are just waiting and hunting for that right fit. However, one of those names found his fit.

Wing forward Emmanuel Akot originally enrolled at Arizona way back in 2017, spending two seasons as a role player for the Wildcats. Despite working his way into the starting rotation his sophomore year, he announced his intention to transfer in January 2019 in the middle of the season, winding up at Boise State. After sitting out the following season due to transfer rules at the time, Akot spent the last two seasons playing for the Broncos in the Mountain West.

Akot’s statistics and usage have increased with each passing year, evolving from an ineffective figure at Arizona to one of the best players on a Boise State team that was in the NCAA Tournament. This past season, he averaged 10.6 points per game, making 38% of his 137 3-point attempts on the year. His offensive numbers don’t exactly stand out overall, shooting just 59% from the free throw line last season, but he’s still a talented piece; a former 4-star recruit, who averaged 2.8 assists per game while with the Broncos.

Akot entered the Transfer Portal a few months ago and narrowed his choices down to Memphis, NC State, and Western Kentucky. His decision to join the Tigers in Memphis will certainly have ramifications for himself and for this program. We’re going to take a closer look at exactly what the impact will be of his commitment and how this transfer will affect this Memphis program for next year, his final year of college basketball.