Cal Bears
The one potential option that’s obvious for Bandaogo is simply following Coach Madsen over to Cal. He’s the man who helped unlocked the big man’s potential and it might not work out with anyone else. It’s a roster that won just three total games last season and is completely being rebuilt. They’ve landed Northern Arizona transfer guard Jalen Cone, along with the very same Aimaq that this transfer replaced at UVU.
While both big men usually play the center position, Aimaq is a good enough athlete and shooter overall to play at the four-spot. And let’s be honest, the Bears could use as much talent as possible to get back to being competitive at the Pac-12 level.
Duke Blue Devils
The Blue Devils brought back both Kyle Filpowski and Mark Mitchell, who primarily play the forward positions. The one big loss for the program so far this offseason was Dereck Lively, who was their defensive anchor as a promising freshman. He’s off to the pros and the team has tried to replace him, including targeting Virginia transfer Kadin Shedrick from Virginia.
Duke doesn’t need much of a scoring threat at the five-spot; just an athletic rim protector with size. Bandaogo would be an ideal option and it would be a great way to raise his profile as well. The eligibility concern may affect their desire but unless other centers enter the portal, this could be the best interior defender left out there for him.