SMU basketball is going to have to get bigger than ever to compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference. As one of the top conferences in men’s basketball yearly, the ACC isn’t going to be an easy league to start dominating.
But now that the Mustangs have brought on Andy Enfield as head coach of the program, their recruiting ability is bigger than ever — quite literally.
SMU’s final roster spot is expected to be filled by 7-foot-2 Turkish big man Samet Yigitoglu, according to a report from Eurohopes.
Yigitoglu has been playing professional basketball in Turkey and as part of the ABA League in Europe since 2020, where he logged over 700 minutes of play.
His real shining moments were in the FIBA Under-20 competition, where he averaged 13.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game.
There will be a lot of challenges ahead for Yigitoglu to adapt to American college basketball, but he’s got so much raw talent and surprising mobility at his size, he could be among the top freshmen in the nation next year.
Enfield’s first roster at SMU, once Yigitoglu officially signs, will be complete, largely coming from the transfer portal. Seven members of the 2024-2025 squad will be transfers including former Oregon guard Kario Oquendo, Long Beach State guard AJ George, and Wake Forest guard Boopie Miller.
Joining Yigitoglu in the frontcourt will be Kansas State forward Jerrell Colbert, UMass forward Matt Cross, former San Jose State forward Tibet Gorener and UC Santa Barbara center Yohan Traore.
The Mustangs’ 2024-2025 campaign is yet to be set in stone, but so far SMU is scheduled to host Mississippi State on Nov. 22 and then head to the Acrisure Holiday Invitational in Palm Springs, California, featuring Washington State, Cal Baptist and Fresno State.
