Gonzaga climbs 247Sports class ranking after addition of transfer Massamba Diop

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs proved that patience is a virtue, especially when it comes to the transfer portal.

After a three week recruitment period, Gonzaga finally got their top target in Massamba Diop, a 7'1 rim protector from Arizona State who announced his commitment on Tuesday - joining the Zags after wrapping up a visit to St. John's over the weekend.

Diop joins Houston guard Isiah Harwell as Gonzaga's two transfer portal additions thus far, with a trio of freshman joining them as well in 6'5 guard Jack Kayil from Germany, 6'5 4-star wing Luca Foster, and 7'0 4-star center Sam Funches.

Those five make up what is now ranked No. 16 among the best crop of newcomers in college basketball, according to 247Sports.

247Sports not only evaluates high school recruits on a 1-5 star scale, but transfers as well. Gonzaga's quintet includes one five-star addition (Diop), three 4-stars (Foster, Funches, and Harwell) and one 3-star (Kayil).

One could argue Gonzaga should be even higher than No. 16, since Kayil is widely considered an elite talent and someone who could be off to the NBA in 2027...if not sooner. However, USA-based recruiting outlets tend to struggle with how to evaluate international talent, and Kayil's 3-star designation is proof of that.

The Zags come in behind 15 high major programs, with an unsurprising group of Michigan, Duke, Kansas, Texas, and Tennessee making up the top five.

Other programs in the top 15 include Arkansas (8), Alabama (10), Indiana (11), and Iowa State (15).

Tops in the Pac-12

Gonzaga slots in well ahead of established programs like UConn (23), Houston (25), Purdue (29), Arizona (31), UCLA (37), Texas Tech (56), and Kentucky (61), and is the lone team in the new look Pac-12 inside the top 50.

Next up for the Pac-12 is Colorado State, who comes in at No. 64 with a trio of incoming 3-star freshmen in Pops Dunson, Eric Fielder, and Spokane native Jaden Ghoreishi.

Oregon State is at No. 66 under new head coach Justin Joyner, who has brought in an excellent transfer portal class so far, with six newcomers including Jackson Rasmussen (Idaho), Legend Smiley (San Francisco), Xavion Staton (BYU), Dennis Evans (Grand Canyon), Deshawn Gory (Fresno State) and Daniel Freitag (Buffalo).

Other Pac-12 schools ranked by 247Sports include San Diego State (104), Washington State (108), Boise State (119), and Texas State (142).

What's Next?

Gonzaga still has five roster spots to fill, although the starting lineup and rotation for the Zags is mostly set at this point. A sharpshooter to add to the backcourt feels like GU's final 'big' addition, so to speak, with Stetson's Ethan Copeland the presumed favorite after the staff recently held a Zoom call with the Washington native.

Another big man wouldn't be a surprise either, especially with the team's two backups - Parker Jefferson and Sam Funches - combining for exactly zero minutes of college basketball experience.

Otherwise, the team will likely look at walk-on types, or perhaps a few high-upside international players, to fill out the rest of the roster as they prepare for a move to the new look Pac-12 in 2026-27.

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