The Vols picked up a commitment from Kingsley Okoroh on Monday. He plans to sign with Tennessee on Wednesday. A 7-1, 250 pound center from Watford, England, Okoroh is rated as a 3-star prospect and as the No. 298 overall player in the 2014 class by 247Sports. He spent last season playing at Westwind Prep Academy in Phoenix, Arizona, where he averaged 16 points, 12 rebounds and 8 blocks. The talented big man will have four years of eligibility remaining and will be the first 7-footer to play for Tennessee since Steve Hamer (92-96). He chose the Vols due to a great relationship with Cuonzo Martin and the chance to earn early playing time. Okoroh boasts offers from Arizona State, Nebraska, SMU, Washington, Washington State, and others and was receiving interest from Marquette, Wichita State, and Georgia Tech.

With Maymon’s graduation and Stokes’ decision to enter the NBA Draft, the Vols will be replacing their starting front court next season. Stokes and Maymon combined for 18.7 rebounds and 24.8 points per game during the 2013-14 season. Okoroh has above average mobility for a 7-1 center but needs to get stronger to play at the college level. His explosiveness isn’t great, but he has the ability to make one move and slam it—something the Vols haven’t featured in the paint in the last few seasons.

He’s only been playing basketball a few years but has several post moves at his disposal, including a right and left handed hook shot. His post game could use some refining, but the potential is clearly there for him to develop into a very consistent scorer. Look for him to add strength and work on several post moves this summer. Defensively, he brings a level of rim protection to the court the Vols haven’t seen in a long time. In the last 13 seasons, Tennessee ranked in the top-third of the SEC in blocks just once—in 2001-2002 when they ranked 4th.

That season, Marcus Haislip averaged 1.76 blocks per game which ranked 2nd in the SEC. Tennessee’s only elite shot blocker this millennium played over 10 years ago. Okoroh is a different player than Haislip (who was 6-10 with a huge vertical), but with the way he uses his height and weight to keep opponents off balance, he’ll have a chance to be just as effective protecting the rim. The past few years we’ve seen teams finish extremely well in the paint against Tennessee’s interior defenders—Okoroh has a chance to reverse that trend and should make an immediate impact. He’ll join fellow front court signees CJ Turman (6-9, 235 pounds) and Philip Cofer (6-8, 205) in the paint when the 2014-15 season tips off.

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