Should BYU basketball pursue this 7-foot-9 Goliath from Florida in the portal?

BYU basketball is still without an excellent 7-foot center to hold down the paint, and with just four open spots remaining on the roster, it's time to start examining the options in the portal and evaluating just how badly Kevin Young and company need to fill that center-shaped hole in their hearts.

First on the "what-if" block is Florida transfer and the tallest player in college basketball, Olivier Rioux. 7-foot-9 is not a typo, though it is unbelievable.

I get it. Olivier Rioux didn't play at Florida for obvious reasons. He's slow. He's uncoordinated. He doesn't have the physical strength to keep up with the biggest and baddest of college basketball. These are all valid criticisms, and all of them would likely force Rioux into a reserve spot even if BYU basketball wanted him.

He played 1.5 minutes per game as a sophomore last season in just 11 appearances. This is not a power conference level starter in the slightest. Not yet.

But what if under the watch of Kevin Young and his NBA Academy with BYU basketball, this French Canadian Goliath could follow a Tacko Fall trajectory? Maybe?

Coming from the prestigious IMG Academy, Rioux stands head, shoulders, knees, and toes above his competition. And he moves like it, too. Slow, plodding, Rioux plays the game at 0.5x speed, and there's no excusing this. He can't get down the floor quickly.

But at his size, shot-blocking and rebounding come completely naturally to him. In a reserve role at BYU, Rioux could develop into the best strategic rotation at Kevin Young's disposal. This is all if things go as well as possible, however, and the chances of that are admittedly slim. Injury questions and concerns about how well his body could withstand the vigor of a full season of Big 12 play keep me from believing Rioux would ever be the starter or second center in Kevin Young's rotation.

For that reason, Rioux will certainly not be a priority for the team. If they can acquire him for a low price, though, there are few more fascinating players in all of college basketball. Who knows if Rioux can become a deadly (though situational) weapon in college hoops?

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