NCAA Basketball: 10 teams who should target Arizona transfer Oumar Ballo

Alabama Crimson Tide

The Tide is coming off its first-ever Final Four appearance and assuming he isn’t going to Kentucky, has one of the best coaches in all of NCAA Basketball in Nate Oats. But the loss to UConn in the Final Four highlighted one of the big weaknesses for them, the center play. They were one of the worst defenses in the sport and in the past five years, it’s been due to how good they can defend inside.

Ballo would be another version of Charles Bediako, the program's last great interior defender. Alabama could lose all three of their big men, who could decline to use their covid years, including Grant Nelson. Adding the former Arizona guy could be the “missing” piece for next season, especially if Mark Sears returns.

Arkansas Razorbacks

Normally, under Coach Eric Musselman, Arkansas would’ve been a top contender for Ballo anyway. But now, they have John Calipari, one of the biggest names in the sport. The result is that Josh Cohen, who previously committed to Arkansas, will be following Musselman to USC.

It’s now a wide-open roster at Arkansas, with plenty of resources to work with. As one of the best centers in the portal, it would make sense for Calipari to try for him, especially if the young bigs don’t follow him over from Kentucky. Even if they did though, Ballo is marginally better than each of them.