Athletic 3-star big Idrissa Diallo commits to Cal
Ending a nearly year-long courtship, GoldenBearReport.com has learned that athletic 3-star big man Idrissa Diallo has signed to Cal, choosing the Bears over the likes of UCLA, Oregon, Colorado, UNLV, USC, Oregon State, and Virginia Tech.
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The Cathedral High product's signing comes a little more than a month after Diallo officially visited Berkeley along with his parents -- who made the long flight over from Senegal to see their son for the first time in 2 1/2 years, and Berkeley for the first time ever.
The 6'11, 230-pounder becomes the second member of the Bears' 2014 class, joining 3-star guard Ahmaad Rorie, and his commitment marks the second straight year the Bears have snagged a pair of Rivals150 commits -- Diallo checks in at 127th nationally, and Rorie 108th. Cal freshmen Jabari Bird and Jordan Mathews were both Rivals150 prospects in 2012.
The Compton Magic center, who's expected to play power forward in college, gives the Bears' 2014 class a unique combination of size and speed: At 6-11, Diallo has the foot speed and maneuverability of a guard, something he attributes to his years of playing soccer in Senegal.
"I've compared him to Dwight Howard in the past," Diallo's AAU coach William Middlebrooks told GoldenBearReport in April, "but he's really improved his shooting so I can definitely see him as a Dirk Nowitzki-type player."
Diallo, who played on the same AAU team that once featured former Cal guard and current Portland Trailblazer Allen Crabbe, sports a 3.4 GPA.