This 4-star big could reclassify to 2026, and BYU basketball is a top-4 finalist

BYU basketball is such a late entrant into the race for four-star big man Theo Edema that 247 Sports hasn't even listed the Cougars as one of his offers (at the time of writing this article). Sort of makes you wonder if the site's high-confidence crystal ball to Maryland is as rock-solid as their experts make it out to be.

As BYU fans know better than anyone, crystal ball projections often don't mean squat.

Edema, a four-star from the class of 2027, just listed out his top four schools in his recruitment process, and the Cougars have just crept in alongside three other programs that 247 has already been privy to for a while: Maryland (the previous favorite), Stanford, and St. John's.

Standing at 6'11" and big-bodied, Edema has no problem making his presence felt down low. Though his footspeed borders a bit on lumbering, there's no denying the sort of dominance he delivers when the ball reaches his hands.

It's hardly surprising that Edema has emerged as a reclassification candidate to the class of '26. He's a man among boys out there.

No friend of the rim, and an offensive knife through the defense's butter, Edema does the majority of his damage on the defensive end, and through rebounding. Shot blocking and board-collecting are two major categories where the Cougars lacked the star power of AJ Dybantsa. If you want to know why last year's team couldn't get over the hump, look no further than the personnel failures and roster construction miscues that left the team naked and helpless as injuries piled up.

As an offensive weapon, specifically, it can take a bit for Edema to wind up and elevate, but once he does, hidden athleticism makes him something of an airborne stone pillar, with nothing and nobody capable of slowing, or even slightly hindering, his trajectory and mission. He's a fantastic lob threat -- perfect for Kevin Young's NBA style system.

You can see some of his highlights from a the Elite 20 Invitational, where he collected 28 points and 11 rebounds on the way to MVP honors.

In the wake of news surrounding center prospects like Ruzic or Suigo, it's refreshing to see more candidates appear seemingly from nowhere. It's becoming increasingly obvious that it's a matter of when, not if, the Cougars will be able to sign a high-quality starting center.

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