IU is after one of the fastest rising players in the 2026 class. And he’s one of the biggest too.
The new Indiana staff offered 7-foot and 280-pound rising senior center Arafan Diané a couple weeks ago.
National recruiting outlet 247Sports named him this week as the top center in the 2026 class and No. 22 overall player. While the rankings updates cycle through, he’s currently listed as a 4-star, the No. 109 overall player in the class, and the No. 12 center according to the average of the national recruiting sites.
Diané isn’t an elite athlete, but he’s a physical force and skilled. In addition to being the strong, bruising big man you’d expect given his size, Diané has a soft touch on the offensive end, and can also step out and make threes.
For spring and summer basketball, Diané plays for Iowa United on the Adidas 3SSB Circuit. So far he’s averaging 16.8 points, a circuit-high 9.4 rebounds and 1.3 blocks while shooting 80.3% overall including 57.1% from three (on seven attempts).
A product of Guinea, Diané doesn’t turn 18 until November.
Before joining Iowa United, Diané played for Dynastie Sports Institute in Montreal, Canada. He has also spent time with the Guinea National Team, recently appearing in the U17 World Cup. In that tournament (seven games), he posted averages of 19.1 points, 11.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.4 blocks, and .6 steals per game on shooting splits of 54.8% from the field, 33.3% from beyond the arc, and 73.8% from the free-throw line.
His offer list includes Louisville, Oregon, Arizona State, Arkansas, Creighton, Cincinnati, Texas Tech, UCF, Florida, West Virginia, Washington, Illinois and Houston.
To see a complete list of all of Indiana’s 2026 through 2028 offers and prospects, GO HERE.
For complete coverage of IU basketball recruiting, GO HERE.
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