Class of '66 Old Fart Posted May 21 Posted May 21 Adam Finkelstein - Another immediate “Rankings Riser” from this weekend’s @3SSBCircuit is Iowa United big man Arafan Diane. He is now rated as the top center in the rising senior class. Stuhoo and Demo 2 Quote
Class of '66 Old Fart Posted May 22 Author Posted May 22 Story on Arafan Diane from The Daily Hoosier. I've mentioned before that he had a WVU offer while DDV was head coach. In the TDH story, it says our new staff offered him a couple of weeks ago. I think Mike jumped the gun on this as there is no other evidence that an IU offer has been extended. Be that as it may, it's a good story with background info on Diane. https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/class-of-2026-iu-basketball-recruiting-target-profile-center-arafan-diane/ Quote
Class of '66 Old Fart Posted May 22 Author Posted May 22 In a related article, Adam Finkelstein for 247, referred to Arafan Diane as a Rankings Riser based on his AAU play. Finkelstein described him as a "monster paint presence" at the first EYBL session and the most dominant big man at last weekend's session. He's jumped up to #22 overall and the #1 ranked center in the '26 class. Stuhoo and Demo 2 Quote
Demo Posted May 22 Posted May 22 17 minutes ago, Class of '66 Old Fart said: In a related article, Adam Finkelstein for 247, referred to Arafan Diane as a Rankings Riser based on his AAU play. Finkelstein described him as a "monster paint presence" at the first EYBL session and the most dominant big man at last weekend's session. He's jumped up to #22 overall and the #1 ranked center in the '26 class. Watched part of a thing he did with Bossi that included a conversation about Diane and they mentioned IU specifically as a school to watch on this one. go iu bb, Stuhoo, Class of '66 Old Fart and 2 others 5 Quote
go iu bb Posted May 22 Posted May 22 It doesn't appear that IU has offered him yet but it's looking like it's just a matter of time. They've watched him multiple times and he was offered by DeVries while at WVU. 7'1" 260lb Center from Guinea who plays HS ball in Iowa. Recently jumped in the 247 rankings from 95 to 22 and is their #1 Center. 247 Quote
Class of '66 Old Fart Posted May 22 Author Posted May 22 We'll be optimistic that an IU offer will be forthcoming. Listed at 7'1" and 260 lbs. plays AAU on the 3SSB circuit for Iowa United - stats below. Back in February, Louisville was pretty confident they'd land him. The following from the Bigredlouie.com website. Arafan Diane is a 4-star prospect out of Iowa United Prep from Des Moines, Ia. Diane is 7-foot and 280 pounds and is the top prospect out of Iowa. He has received over 15 offers, but Louisville sent their offer back in September and was one of the first to reach out to this dominant center. Cardinals are given the best chances to land Diane, according to On3 projections, as Louisville has an 11.3% chance of landing this prodigy out of Iowa. The Center recently played for Guinea in the FIBA U17 World Cup tournament last summer and dominated all competition. 247 Rivals On3 FIBA Stats Arafan Diane '26 - Iowa United Date Gms Pts FGM FGA 3PM 3PA FTM FTA Reb Ast TO Blk Stl May '25 8 16.8 53 66 4 7 24 35 9.4 1.3 0.5 1.3 0 Quote
go iu bb Posted May 22 Posted May 22 23 minutes ago, Class of '66 Old Fart said: We'll be optimistic that an IU offer will be forthcoming. Listed at 7'1" and 260 lbs. plays AAU on the 3SSB circuit for Iowa United - stats below. Back in February, Louisville was pretty confident they'd land him. The following from the Bigredlouie.com website. Arafan Diane is a 4-star prospect out of Iowa United Prep from Des Moines, Ia. Diane is 7-foot and 280 pounds and is the top prospect out of Iowa. He has received over 15 offers, but Louisville sent their offer back in September and was one of the first to reach out to this dominant center. Cardinals are given the best chances to land Diane, according to On3 projections, as Louisville has an 11.3% chance of landing this prodigy out of Iowa. The Center recently played for Guinea in the FIBA U17 World Cup tournament last summer and dominated all competition. 247 Rivals On3 FIBA Stats Arafan Diane '26 - Iowa United Date Gms Pts FGM FGA 3PM 3PA FTM FTA Reb Ast TO Blk Stl May '25 8 16.8 53 66 4 7 24 35 9.4 1.3 0.5 1.3 0 lol @ that website for giving any credence to On3's projections. Quote
Class of '66 Old Fart Posted June 10 Author Posted June 10 Still no offer but On3 reported yesterday: Mutual interest growing between Indiana and 2026 top-40 center Arafan Diane. Staff will probably be watching him closely at the NBPA Top 100 Camp later this week. Stuhoo 1 Quote
Demo Posted June 14 Posted June 14 https://x.com/DianeArafan1/status/1933994208152740240 Officially offered. mamasa, go iu bb, Class of '66 Old Fart and 1 other 3 1 Quote
Class of '66 Old Fart Posted June 14 Author Posted June 14 https://hoosierstateofmind.com/arafan-diane-7-foot-center-and-four-star-prospect-in-2026-class-lands-indiana-offer-01jw536wjy4t Hoopshq.com - When Arafan Diane was 12 years old growing up in the West African nation of Guinea, he was buying a soccer ball at a local market and met Souleymane Kasse, the coach of the Guinea National Training Center and an assistant for Guinea’s national team. Kasse was surprised to learn the boy was so young. Looking at Diane’s long legs and long arms, he told Arafan he should buy a basketball instead. That turned out to be excellent advice. Today, just five years later, Diane is one of the top high school basketball players in America. The 7-foot-1 senior from Iowa United Prep, a school which specializes in recruiting African players, shined this week at the National Basketball Player’s Association’s Top 100 Camp in Rock Hill, S.C. Diane’s skills are a little rough, but he is physical and agile, and he plays with impressive tenacity. He opened up by going for 25 points during his first game for Team Drummond and ended up averaging 13.3 points on 52.0 percent shooting to go along with 4.9 rebounds during the three days of play. Diane’s play made clear why he is ranked in the 247Sports Composite as the No. 1 center and No. 23 overall prospect in the Class of 2026. While playing for Iowa United on the Adidas 3SSB Circuit this spring, Dianie has averaged 16.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.3 blocks. He has jolted up to the No. 23 overall prospect and No. 1 center in 247Sports’ Top-150 class of 2026 rankings after being ranked in the eighties a few months ago. Much like his game, Diane’s English is a work in progress – he speaks five other languages, including French, which is the official language of Guinea – but he made clear that he was feeling confident in his performance at the Top 100 Camp. “I’m feeling good,” Diane told Hoops HQ midway through the event. “I’m pushing my team in winning every single day. This is a good opportunity. Most people don’t have this opportunity. I’m African. That’s different. I need to come in with a good mentality because you don’t have a mom (in America), you don’t have any dad, you don’t have nothing. You need a strong mentality.” 3SSB Circuit Stats for 8 games: 16.8 p / 9.4 r / 1.5 a / .8 b 80% FG / 69% FT / he's 4-7 on 3s. NBPA Top 100 Camp Arafan Diane '26 Gms Pts FGM FGA 3PM 3PA FTM FTA Reb Ast TO Stl Blk Min Fls 114-86 W 25 8 12 0 0 9 10 2 0 2 0 0 24 0 118-100 L 7 2 6 0 0 3 4 3 0 3 0 0 18 4 79-64 W 8 3 7 0 0 2 2 7 0 1 0 0 15 3 Gm #4 NO GAME STATS 101-96 L 17 6 8 1 1 4 4 7 0 1 0 0 18 6 Count/Avg 4 14.3 58% 100% 90% 4.8 0.0 1.8 0.0 0.0 19 mamasa and Demo 2 Quote
Stuhoo Posted June 14 Posted June 14 12 minutes ago, Class of '66 Old Fart said: https://hoosierstateofmind.com/arafan-diane-7-foot-center-and-four-star-prospect-in-2026-class-lands-indiana-offer-01jw536wjy4t Hoopshq.com - When Arafan Diane was 12 years old growing up in the West African nation of Guinea, he was buying a soccer ball at a local market and met Souleymane Kasse, the coach of the Guinea National Training Center and an assistant for Guinea’s national team. Kasse was surprised to learn the boy was so young. Looking at Diane’s long legs and long arms, he told Arafan he should buy a basketball instead. That turned out to be excellent advice. Today, just five years later, Diane is one of the top high school basketball players in America. The 7-foot-1 senior from Iowa United Prep, a school which specializes in recruiting African players, shined this week at the National Basketball Player’s Association’s Top 100 Camp in Rock Hill, S.C. Diane’s skills are a little rough, but he is physical and agile, and he plays with impressive tenacity. He opened up by going for 25 points during his first game for Team Drummond and ended up averaging 13.3 points on 52.0 percent shooting to go along with 4.9 rebounds during the three days of play. Diane’s play made clear why he is ranked in the 247Sports Composite as the No. 1 center and No. 23 overall prospect in the Class of 2026. While playing for Iowa United on the Adidas 3SSB Circuit this spring, Dianie has averaged 16.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.3 blocks. He has jolted up to the No. 23 overall prospect and No. 1 center in 247Sports’ Top-150 class of 2026 rankings after being ranked in the eighties a few months ago. Much like his game, Diane’s English is a work in progress – he speaks five other languages, including French, which is the official language of Guinea – but he made clear that he was feeling confident in his performance at the Top 100 Camp. “I’m feeling good,” Diane told Hoops HQ midway through the event. “I’m pushing my team in winning every single day. This is a good opportunity. Most people don’t have this opportunity. I’m African. That’s different. I need to come in with a good mentality because you don’t have a mom (in America), you don’t have any dad, you don’t have nothing. You need a strong mentality.” 3SSB Circuit Stats for 8 games: 16.8 p / 9.4 r / 1.5 a / .8 b 80% FG / 69% FT / he's 4-7 on 3s. NBPA Top 100 Camp Arafan Diane '26 Gms Pts FGM FGA 3PM 3PA FTM FTA Reb Ast TO Stl Blk Min Fls 114-86 W 25 8 12 0 0 9 10 2 0 2 0 0 24 0 118-100 L 7 2 6 0 0 3 4 3 0 3 0 0 18 4 79-64 W 8 3 7 0 0 2 2 7 0 1 0 0 15 3 Gm #4 NO GAME STATS 101-96 L 17 6 8 1 1 4 4 7 0 1 0 0 18 6 Count/Avg 4 14.3 58% 100% 90% 4.8 0.0 1.8 0.0 0.0 19 18/19 from the line for a 7’1” kid? That’s impressive. Demo, moyemayhem and cybergates 3 Quote
rayl456 Posted June 15 Posted June 15 2 hours ago, Stuhoo said: 18/19 from the line for a 7’1” kid? That’s impressive. This kid is like Mellencamp’s line from his song “Cherry Bomb”… ”We were young and we were improvin’ “. Quote
Class of '66 Old Fart Posted June 15 Author Posted June 15 2 hours ago, Stuhoo said: 18/19 from the line for a 7’1” kid? That’s impressive. You made me nervous that maybe I'd made an input error so I doublechecked and he was indeed 18/19 on FTs. Quote
Class of '66 Old Fart Posted June 15 Author Posted June 15 https://www.insidethehall.com/2025/06/15/class-of-2026-big-man-arafan-diane-lands-iu-basketball-scholarship-offer/ Stuhoo 1 Quote
rayl456 Posted June 15 Posted June 15 1 hour ago, Class of '66 Old Fart said: https://www.insidethehall.com/2025/06/15/class-of-2026-big-man-arafan-diane-lands-iu-basketball-scholarship-offer/ He is a load. Painter’s kind of big man. Kid has decent skills. Can DeVries and staff sell him on IU…or maybe I should say buy him? Quote
Class of '66 Old Fart Posted June 22 Author Posted June 22 https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/spring-aau-and-nbpa-top-100-highlights-iu-basketball-2026-center-target-arafan-diane/ Quote
Demo Posted July 18 Posted July 18 Nice. The Quincy Shootout, which is a really terrific showcase event even if Quincy, Illinois is kind of a toilet, just announced that Iowa Prep is playing there this year. So whether Diane ends up at IU or not I’ll get to see him at least once up close. Looks like the Placide twins and Junior County will be there as well. MemphisHoosier and Class of '66 Old Fart 2 Quote
BA47591 Posted July 19 Posted July 19 On 6/14/2025 at 8:15 PM, rayl456 said: This kid is like Mellencamp’s line from his song “Cherry Bomb”… ”We were young and we were improvin’ “. " a little ditty about Arafan Diane,,,," moyemayhem, Pagoda and sweetpain 1 2 Quote
Class of '66 Old Fart Posted July 19 Author Posted July 19 FWIW, I've seen it reported that his name is pronounced - Air-a-fawn Dee-ah-nee. Kind of in a similar vein, Prince-Alexander Moody commonly goes by Alex. Quote
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