Texas lands transfer from former Xavier big man, per report

Head coach Sean Miller is working on his first roster at Texas, taking over for the Longhorns after a string of disappointing March Madness appearances. On Monday, Miller reportedly landed another transfer piece, this time grabbing a player from his former Xavier roster.

According to Travis Branham with 247 Sports, big man Lassina Traore is committing to the Longhorns after spending the 2024-25 season at Xavier. Traore has previous stops at Saint Louis and Long Beach State and wound up missing the 2024-25 season with an injury while with Miller and the Musketeers.

While at Long Beach State, the 6-foot-9 Traore was a star in the middle of the Sharks’ lineup. He led the Big West Conference in rebounding for 2 seasons while averaging 12.4 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists while shooting 52.9% from the floor.

Provided Traore is healthy for the move to Texas, he should be a potential anchor in the middle for the Longhorns. He received a 4-star transfer rating from 247 Sports and joins a strong transfer recruiting class for Miller.

So far, the Longhorns have 4 transfer commitments with an emphasis on adding size to the frontcourt. Camden Heide (Purdue), Dailynn Swann (Xavier) and Matas Vokietaitis (FAU) have also committed to Texas in the portal with each player measuring in at 6-foot-7 or taller. Vokietaitis is a 7-footer who was the AAC’s Freshman of the Year this past season.

Texas’s transfer recruiting class is currently ranked 14th nationally per 247 Sports in a strong start for Miller’s tenure.

Paul Harvey

Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.