Former Gophers forward Josh Ola-Joseph commits to Cal

Ola-Joseph played 29 games for Minnesota last season.

Former Gophers men’s basketball forward Josh Ola-Joseph has committed to Cal, according to On3’s Joe Tipton. Ola-Joseph retweeted Tipton’s post with blue and yellow hearts and a bear emoji — Cal’s colors and mascot. 

Ola-Joseph entered the NCAA transfer portal after the Gophers bowed out of the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). Ola-Joseph started 19 games for the U last season, averaging 7.5 points and 2.2 rebounds per game. But he mostly fell out of the rotation as the season went on.

During the Gophers’ NIT run, Ola-Joseph played just three minutes in a win over Butler and didn’t see the court in a loss to Indiana State. Ola-Joseph also didn’t play in the Gophers’ lone appearance in the Big Ten Tournament, a 10-point loss to Michigan State. 

But Ola-Joseph was just a sophomore last season and will bring a lot of experience with him to Cal. He played in 29 games this season and all 31 games during his freshman season in 2022-23, where he started 24 games. He averaged 7.6 points and 2.8 rebounds per game that season. 

Ola-Joseph also scored a career-high-matching 17 points in a win over Florida Gulf Coast back on Dec. 9. He’s posted 24 double-digit scoring outings during his two years at the U. 

Now he’ll get another chance with the Golden Bears.