Baylor Basketball

Baylor’s Tounde Yessoufou Enters Portal as Draft Stock Climbs

After declaring for the NBA Draft just over a week ago, Baylor freshman wing Tounde Yessoufou has now entered the transfer portal
April 21, 2026
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Photo by Jack Mackenzie - SicEm365.com

After declaring for the NBA Draft just over a week ago, Baylor freshman wing Tounde Yessoufou has now entered the transfer portal, according to Rivals’ Jamie Shaw.

Yessoufou received All-Big 12 Honorable Mention in his first season in Waco, averaging 17.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.0 steals per game. He shot 29% from beyond the arc, 47% from the field and 75% from the charity stripe. The Benin native set the all-time Baylor freshman records with 605 points scored, 226 field goals made and 486 field goals attempted.

Most NBA mock drafts initially projected Yessoufou as a second-round selection, but a recent wave of projected first-rounders choosing to return to college has opened the door for him to steadily rise into late first-round consideration.

It’s unclear whether Yessoufou plans to remain in the NBA Draft, along with teammate Cameron Carr, or if he has entered the transfer portal to keep his options open before the deadline.

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Baylor’s Tounde Yessoufou Enters Portal as Draft Stock Climbs

11,668 Views | 40 Replies | Last: 12 days ago by Ewalker80
IowaBear
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Yawn
Mitch Henessey
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This is what I feared. If he has stayed out of the portal, he would come back to us if he didn't like his draft prospects. Now, I would wager he goes to the highest bidder. Unlikely that's us.
Big12Fan2024
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As I said weeks ago, he was never coming back here. It was either the draft or a school with a high NIL budget that we can't touch. It made no sense other than maybe he likes the coaching staff. With agents, family and others in your ears telling you Kentucky and others can pay you twice what Baylor can pay and you've never seen that kind of money in your life and you're a teenager, you simply thank Baylor for the enjoyable year here and move into the big time money play.

I'll be shocked if it isn't Kentucky. Their two biggest "insiders" have been saying this was going to happen for weeks and they've whiffed on almost every other player so there is huge pressure on Pope to have a splash now. The ultimate kick in the face is when the church passes the plate in Utah and the Council decides to pay more than Kentucky for him.
BluesBear
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Bye-Bye. Overrated in my books.
GeorgesBigO
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On3 has UCLA as the team with early momentum. Would suck to lose him if he stays in college. I think he would have been one of the most productive players in the country next year
Big12Fan2024
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If money differential doesn't come into play, I could easily see him going back to California to play. I just have a feeling Kentucky (and please not BYU) is gonna dump a price on him that no one can walk away from. He's gonna benefit from all those whiffs Pope has so far in the portal and so Kentucky is going to drop a boatload on someone just to make sure they don't lose that person. Pope literally can't afford any more public embarrassments with the fanbase. UCLA has money, but not at the level Kentucky is willing to spend.
GeorgesBigO
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His American family has significant Baylor ties, which obviously helped Drew land him in the first place. Would be great if he stayed loyal for another year
Big12Fan2024
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I wish he would too. I can see him having a huge breakout year for someone and wish it would be us. I just think when someone has the chance to make astronomical money and he (and his family) is hearing from everyone around him this is the chance to change your entire life history and it's a guaranteed amount essentially, making 2x to 3x more is one thing if you're talking about $50K to $100K or $150K, but when you start talking about the difference in making $2 million at one place vs. $4, $5, or $6 million somewhere else, it's next to impossible to walk away from that no matter how much you like someone or some place.
possible12
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Trying to reconcile the 'loyalty' dump on Wright vs. this IF he chooses to go to another colloege team? Crazy college athletic world, for sure. Fans are all over the map, with good reason, of course.

This would end up happening alnost 2 weeks later than Wright's departure.
Big12Fan2024
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Wright: Agreed to a contract, Lied to Drew and coaching staff that he was 100% Baylor. BYU approaches his dad and says they want him and will pay him more. In the meantime Drew had stopped looking for a PG thinking he'd solved that piece, shortly thereafter Wright bolts for a higher offer just after Drew had told 2 highly rated PGs we were not interested and they signed with other schools.

Yessoufou - Upfront with Drew saying he was going into the draft and may go into the portal. Never signed or agreed to any contract. Never lied to Drew or the coaching staff of his intentions. Drew has been looking for replacements for Yessoufou since. Yessoufou then confirms he's going into portal.


Not even remotely similar situations.

But my beef is still more with BYU than Rob. They played the Eddie Haskell role (as I've said in other threads) and pretend complete innocence when they were 100% tampering.
bear2be2
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Honestly, with Mingo and Williams projected among the top three or four guard options, we don't really need a wing who shots 29 percent from 3.

I don't have anything against Tounde, but we're going to need a player at his position next year who can be a consistent threat from the perimeter, and there's no guarantee he improves significantly in that area.

I would have liked to have had him back because I think he'll be a really good player in time. But this isn't a fatal blow by any stretch, so long as we spend that money well in the portal.
Mitch Henessey
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It sounds like there's still hope that we can retain him, and that he just entered the portal to keep all of his options open.

That said, if it's just coming down to a bidding war, I don't feel good about our chances of getting Tounde back.
bear2be2
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Mitch Henessey said:

It sounds like there's still hope that we can retain him, and that he just entered the portal to keep all of his options open.

That said, if it's just coming down to a bidding war, I don't feel good about our chances of getting Tounde back.
At this point, stay or go, who really cares? College sports are a joke.

I increasingly find myself asking why I still care about any of this stuff at all. I'm basically a fan out of habit now.
IowaBear
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Pretty soon you won't care. I'm pretty much at this point. I have zero plans to make watching Baylor a priority going forward. If I'm home and they're on TV I'll watch. But I'm no longer planning my Saturdays around Baylor's two major sports.
Big12Fan2024
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bear2be2 said:



I increasingly find myself asking why I still care about any of this stuff at all. I'm basically a fan out of habit now.


I've been addicted to college sports and Baylor sports in particular my entire life, but I'm gradually starting to accept the reality of the New World Order of college athletics and our limited place in it without any funding. I'm starting to lose interest in what is now minor league football and G league basketball.
Johnny Bear
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bear2be2 said:

Mitch Henessey said:

It sounds like there's still hope that we can retain him, and that he just entered the portal to keep all of his options open.

That said, if it's just coming down to a bidding war, I don't feel good about our chances of getting Tounde back.
At this point, stay or go, who really cares? College sports are a joke.

I increasingly find myself asking why I still care about any of this stuff at all. I'm basically a fan out of habit now.

Anymore, I feel much the same way. Still a fan and more specifically a BU fan, but just about every major aspect that I traditionally loved about college sports is gone and it's all just another form of pro sports where the schools with the highest NIL budgets ultimately prevail. I seriously hate this new landscape.
bear2be2
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Big12Fan2024 said:

bear2be2 said:



I increasingly find myself asking why I still care about any of this stuff at all. I'm basically a fan out of habit now.


I've been addicted to college sports and Baylor sports in particular my entire life, but I'm gradually starting to accept the reality of the New World Order of college athletics and our limited place in it without any funding. I'm starting to lose interest in what is now minor league football and G league basketball.
Even if we were funded at the top in all sports, I would still hate what college athletics have become.

Like everything else that was ever pure or beautiful, college sports have had their soul ripped right out by the almighty dollar in America's corporate hellscape.

It's only a matter of time before we're watching the Kalshi national championship game, brought to you by OnlyFans.
Ewalker80
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Some day they'll be a fascinating and sad documentary about the life of the average D1 college athlete during this era playing B-Ball or Football. Go to 2-5 schools. Make 3-500K over that time---burn through most of it in some cases buying fancy cars like every player I've seen and sometimes maybe helping your family. No degree or prospect of getting one, no financial planning help, very few lasting or helpful relationships coming out of the experience. Tragic.

Hopefully there will be some legislation to fix it soon --- more for the players than the fans.
PaperBear89
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Ewalker80 said:

Some day they'll be a fascinating and sad documentary about the life of the average D1 college athlete during this era playing B-Ball or Football. Go to 2-5 schools. Make 3-500K over that time---burn through most of it in some cases buying fancy cars like every player I've seen and sometimes maybe helping your family. No degree or prospect of getting one, no financial planning help, very few lasting or helpful relationships coming out of the experience. Tragic.

Hopefully there will be some legislation to fix it soon --- more for the players than the fans.


When the NIL money grab started, I think most players thought: Cool, I'll grab a little cash on my way to the league. What many are now realizing is that it's a hell of a lot tougher to make an NBA roster nowadays because Europe happened + a bunch of dudes who went to G league to wait until they turned 19. So these "college" players probably realize these are the only checks they'll ever cash for hooping.
Stefano DiMera
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Not sure if college sports was ever pure and beautiful.

As long as we're playing games and keeping score.. I'm always going to root for the Green and Gold fabric and whoever is wearing it . No matter how short the time.

All of our one and dones.. have nothing but positive to say about their time at Baylor.
Ewalker80
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Stefano DiMera said:

Not sure if college sports was ever pure and beautiful.

As long as we're playing games and keeping score.. I'm always going to root for the Green and Gold fabric and whoever is wearing it . No matter how short the time.

All of our one and dones.. have nothing but positive to say about their time at Baylor.

nothing in this world is 100% pure. But it used to be the case that many, many D1 college football and basketball players were going to class, making grades (or not playing), getting degrees, and then using those degrees in things other than sports. When I attended UT for law school in 2002, every semester starting players on the football team were missing a semester for NOT MAKING GRADES! I kid you not. It wasn't perfect and they could get a car for $100 at uncle joe's dealership, but they were basically college students getting some perks, and for most of them the perks were pretty small. Erick Dickerson got a camaro that was probalby worth $50K in modern dollars in 1980 and it was an iconic moment in under the table perks getting out of hand..

The Alston case dramatically changed college sports for the worse nearly overnight. I thought the House case would help fix it but so far it's done nothing and possibly made it worse by simply putting the revenue share money on top of the pay for play outside money (don't call it NIL).

Unless that former prosecutor supposed to be enforcing the house settlement gets off his ____ and starts trying to go after people for doing pay for play outside money not reasonably related to services provided in violation of the agreement, it won't have any impact. Nobody in college sports seems to talk about or give one flying crap about the house agreement or its terms as far as I can tell.
bear2be2
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Stefano DiMera said:

Not sure if college sports was ever pure and beautiful.

As long as we're playing games and keeping score.. I'm always going to root for the Green and Gold fabric and whoever is wearing it . No matter how short the time.

All of our one and dones.. have nothing but positive to say about their time at Baylor.
Go watch Division III. College athletics absolutely can be both pure and beautiful. Unfortunately, money has corrupted everything that makes them so at the highest levels of these sports.

And since allowing conferences to negotiate their own TV deals, we've been on irreversible path to the current state, which is unrecognizable from what any of these sports were created or designed to be.
possible12
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Just think of the $ being saved on tutors and academic centers for student athletes. And coaches not having to monitor attendance. Patches on unis are coming. Nike's pissed.
merckywaters
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<Insert Denzel slammin the door gif>
#FreeCinque
Jacques Strap
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Big12Fan2024 said:

As I said weeks ago, he was never coming back here. It was either the draft or a school with a high NIL budget that we can't touch. It made no sense other than maybe he likes the coaching staff. With agents, family and others in your ears telling you Kentucky and others can pay you twice what Baylor can pay and you've never seen that kind of money in your life and you're a teenager, you simply thank Baylor for the enjoyable year here and move into the big time money play.

I'll be shocked if it isn't Kentucky. Their two biggest "insiders" have been saying this was going to happen for weeks and they've whiffed on almost every other player so there is huge pressure on Pope to have a splash now. The ultimate kick in the face is when the church passes the plate in Utah and the Council decides to pay more than Kentucky for him.


That was my take too. +1
Jacques Strap
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bear2be2 said:

Mitch Henessey said:

It sounds like there's still hope that we can retain him, and that he just entered the portal to keep all of his options open.

That said, if it's just coming down to a bidding war, I don't feel good about our chances of getting Tounde back.

At this point, stay or go, who really cares? College sports are a joke.

I increasingly find myself asking why I still care about any of this stuff at all. I'm basically a fan out of habit now.

I still care some, mostly out of habit.I care less than I used to.

As the NIL era and constant roster turnover continue, I've transitioned from an invested fan to a casual one.
Stefano DiMera
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Cameron Carr predicted at 18...Yessefou at 35.


https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/48582124/2026-nba-mock-draft-top-30-first-round-picks-nba-lottery-dybantsa-boozer-peterson
bear2be2
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Stefano DiMera said:



Cameron Carr predicted at 18...Yessefou at 35.


https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/48582124/2026-nba-mock-draft-top-30-first-round-picks-nba-lottery-dybantsa-boozer-peterson
Yessoufou was a fool for leaving college. He's just put himself on the Quincy Miller/Kendall Brown path to a European tour or "real world job" by 25 years old.
DP4LIFE
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bear2be2 said:

Stefano DiMera said:



Cameron Carr predicted at 18...Yessefou at 35.


https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/48582124/2026-nba-mock-draft-top-30-first-round-picks-nba-lottery-dybantsa-boozer-peterson

Yessoufou was a fool for leaving college. He's just put himself on the Quincy Miller/Kendall Brown path to a European tour or "real world job" by 25 years old.

I think Yessoufou can still come back to college. He's leaving his options open while he gets assessed by the NBA. If he does come back to college, doubtful it will be at BU as other teams will likely offer him $3 million +.
bear2be2
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DP4LIFE said:

bear2be2 said:

Stefano DiMera said:



Cameron Carr predicted at 18...Yessefou at 35.


https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/48582124/2026-nba-mock-draft-top-30-first-round-picks-nba-lottery-dybantsa-boozer-peterson

Yessoufou was a fool for leaving college. He's just put himself on the Quincy Miller/Kendall Brown path to a European tour or "real world job" by 25 years old.

I think Yessoufou can still come back to college. He's leaving his options open while he gets assessed by the NBA. If he does come back to college, doubtful it will be at BU as other teams will likely offer him $3 million +.
It was reported recently that his agent is telling people he's staying in the draft.

A truly dumb decision, given that his only paths to the first round in this class are having enough of the guys ahead of him return to school or a franchise reach badly on a guy without an NBA-ready skill set.
bear2be2
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DP4LIFE said:

bear2be2 said:

Stefano DiMera said:



Cameron Carr predicted at 18...Yessefou at 35.


https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/48582124/2026-nba-mock-draft-top-30-first-round-picks-nba-lottery-dybantsa-boozer-peterson

Yessoufou was a fool for leaving college. He's just put himself on the Quincy Miller/Kendall Brown path to a European tour or "real world job" by 25 years old.

I think Yessoufou can still come back to college. He's leaving his options open while he gets assessed by the NBA. If he does come back to college, doubtful it will be at BU as other teams will likely offer him $3 million +.
And I don't expect -- or even particularly want -- him to return to Baylor.

I've never really liked his game (he's a wing player who can't dribble, pass or shoot and he gambles/cheats constantly on defense), and his general lack of basketball IQ drives me insane. With Mingo in the mix, I don't think I'd bring him back if we could. But he should still return to college ... for the good of his own career.
Crawfoso1973
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Weird thread title, considering his draft stock continues to tank.
Chuckroast
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bear2be2 said:

DP4LIFE said:

bear2be2 said:

Stefano DiMera said:



Cameron Carr predicted at 18...Yessefou at 35.


https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/48582124/2026-nba-mock-draft-top-30-first-round-picks-nba-lottery-dybantsa-boozer-peterson

Yessoufou was a fool for leaving college. He's just put himself on the Quincy Miller/Kendall Brown path to a European tour or "real world job" by 25 years old.

I think Yessoufou can still come back to college. He's leaving his options open while he gets assessed by the NBA. If he does come back to college, doubtful it will be at BU as other teams will likely offer him $3 million +.
It was reported recently that his agent is telling people he's staying in the draft.

A truly dumb decision, given that his only paths to the first round in this class are having enough of the guys ahead of him return to school or a franchise reach badly on a guy without an NBA-ready skill set.



His agent probably figures that making the announcement that he intends to stay in the draft will raise the NIL offers.
Chuckroast
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bear2be2 said:

DP4LIFE said:

bear2be2 said:

Stefano DiMera said:



Cameron Carr predicted at 18...Yessefou at 35.


https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/48582124/2026-nba-mock-draft-top-30-first-round-picks-nba-lottery-dybantsa-boozer-peterson

Yessoufou was a fool for leaving college. He's just put himself on the Quincy Miller/Kendall Brown path to a European tour or "real world job" by 25 years old.

I think Yessoufou can still come back to college. He's leaving his options open while he gets assessed by the NBA. If he does come back to college, doubtful it will be at BU as other teams will likely offer him $3 million +.
And I don't expect -- or even particularly want -- him to return to Baylor.

I've never really liked his game (he's a wing player who can't dribble, pass or shoot and he gambles/cheats constantly on defense), and his general lack of basketball IQ drives me insane. With Mingo in the mix, I don't think I'd bring him back if we could. But he should still return to college ... for the good of his own career.


While I think he has the potential to be a great college player, I agree that he is probably not a big need at this point for us. We could definitely use a seasoned big.
EvilTroyAndAbed
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Seems like he's always had the dream of playing one year in college and going to the NBA and nothing is going to change that. And he'll probably get drafted in the second round and sign a 2-way deal and spend most of next year in the G League. Oh well. There's worse things you could do I guess.
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