Incoming transfer Femi Odukale can be 'Swiss army knife' for Gophers hoops

Odukale could unlock a lot of versatility for the Gophers this season.

NMSU guard Femi Odukale looks for a teammate to pass the ball to during a college basketball game on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, at Pan American Center. / Meg Potter/Sun-News / USA TODAY NETWORK

Minnesota men's basketball had a busy offseason, adding seven new scholarship players from the transfer portal. New Mexico State's Femi Odukale is one of the most intriguing due to his versatility to play all over the court.

The Brooklyn, NY native has had a journeyman college career, starting out at Pittsburgh before transferring to Seton Hall and then playing for the Aggies last season. He averaged 10.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 3.0 assists on 43.2/31.0/49.6 shooting splits for a 13-19 NMSU team in 2023-24.

"Femi is a player that's just like a Swiss army knife, he can play multiple positions from the one to the four," Gophers head coach Ben Johnson said. "Really good feel in the ball screen, really good feel in the pick and roll, but a guy that's played at a high-major level at two different spots, so he understands it, he knows it, he sees it, really good defensively."

Listed at 6-foot-6 and 205 pounds, Odukale played mostly point guard at Pitt, small forward at Seton Hall, and power forward at New Mexico State. Given the Gophers' current roster, he may fit best as a forward for Johnson this season.

Mike Mitchell Jr., Lu'Cye Patterson, Tyler Cochran, Brennan Rigsby, Caleb Williams and Isaac Asuma make up a Minnesota backcourt loaded with depth and versatility. It might behoove Johnson and his staff to play Odukale at the three, where redshirt sophomore Kadyn Betts and incoming freshman Grayson Grove are seemingly the other potential options.

Last season, Cam Christie showed a similar skillset to Odukale with the ability to run the offense at times but play more naturally as a two and most often as a three. Odukale could fill the void left by Christie's departure to the NBA in the starting lineup next season. Johnson saying he can play one through four and that he likes his defensive versatility makes me believe the fifth-year veteran will have a significant role on this roster.

Figuring out the rotation between the six scholarship players in the backourt might be what truly unlocks the full potential of this team, but Odukale's versatility as a defender and facilitator could take a lot of pressure off of whoever Minnesota runs out at point guard and shooting guard.