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Yohan Traore (21) competes in a game on the Adidas 3SSB Circuit.
Call it a reload.
Auburn has landed one of the nation’s best high school prospects, as five-star center Yohan Traore announced his commitment to Auburn on Thursday. The 6-foot-10 center originally from France chose Auburn over Gonzaga, Michigan and Texas Tech.
Traore was previously committed to LSU and head coach Will Wade. After LSU received a notice of allegations from the NCAA and fired Wade in early March, Traore decommited and Auburn worked on bringing him to the Plains.
Traore is rated as the No. 1 player in Arizona, the No. 4 center in the class of 2022 and the No. 15 player overall, according to 247Sports composite rankings.
The big man is only the program’s fourth five-star signee out of high school of all-time, joining Jabari Smith, Sharife Cooper and Mustapha Heron. Pearl and his staff recruited all of Auburn’s previous five-star prospects. Walker Kessler was a five-star in high school but came to Auburn as a transfer from North Carolina.
Currently, Pearl and the Tigers have two other players in their class of 2022.
Chance Westry is a four-star small forward from Arizona. Westry is the No. 2 player in the state, No. 9 small forward and No. 31 player in the class of 2022, according to 247Sports composite rankings.
Auburn’s other 2022 signee is point guard Tre Donaldson from Florida. The 6-foot-1 guard is the No. 18 point guard, No. 2 player in Florida and the No. 129 player in the nation, according to 247Sports composite rankings.
Traore, Westry and Donaldson will join an Auburn team that is coming off a 2021 season which saw the Tigers win the SEC regular-season championship for just the fourth time in program history. Auburn finished the season with a 28-6 record and made it to the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 32 before falling to Miami.
A post shared by Yohan Traore (@yohantraore21)
“After further consideration and reopening my recruitment I would like to thank all the colleges that took the time to re-recruit me. Once again it was a hard decision to make but I can only call one place home,” Traore said in his commitment announcement on Instagram.
“My journey has been a long one with the various changes that have occurred. I have had my ups and downs but stayed faith to God and my grind and have persevered but have so much more to accomplish. I would like thank my loving parents for instilling a work ethic on and off the court believing in me to pursue and accomplish my dreams. I would also like to thank the different programs I have been a part of along my journey from Dream Vision, Dream City Christian, Prolific Prep, and Southern Assault. You guys believed in my game and pushed me to become the player I aspire to be. I am also very appreciative of my teammates from the school season to AAU. I’ve built many friendships and developed relationships that I believe will last a lifetime.
“Lastly, I want to thank my family. The numerous things they do for me on and off the court plus showing me how to navigate in life has been bigger than basketball. With all that being said, it has been a tough decision but I can only choose one. I am thrilled to announce I will be committing to Auburn University.”
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Yohan Traore (21) competes in a game on the Adidas 3SSB Circuit.
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