Utah basketball bolsters frontcourt depth with international recruit

The Utah men's basketball program didn't stop pulling talent from the international ranks after landing one of the top European prospects on Monday.

Roughly 24 hours removed from Israeli guard Noam Yaacov signing with the Runnin' Utes, the program announced Tuesday morning that German forward Alec Anigbata has been added to the roster for the 2026-27 campaign.

Anigbata is set to make his way to the states after a six-year career in the German Bundesliga, which is considered to be the top-tier professional club basketball league in Germany. The 6-foot-8 forward also brings experience on the international stage as a member of the German under-20 national team.

Anigbata is the sixth addition Utah has made this offseason, joining Jackson Holcombe (Utah Valley transfer), Taison Chatman (Ohio State transfer), Malek Gomma (Weber State transfer), TJ Burch (Wright State transfer) and Yaacov. When including returners Babacar Faye, Lucas Langarita and Obomate Abbey, Utah is up to six international players for the 2026-27 season, as Anigbata, Austrian forward Fynn Schott and French forward Zati Loubaki round out the Utes' foreign flavor.

Like his new European teammates, Anigbata joins Utah having logged several seasons in one of the top leagues Europe has to offer. He spent the first three years of his pro career with FC Bayern before getting a chance to shine with Weißenhorn-based club, OrangeAcademy, in the 2023-24 season.

Anigbata was productive in his two years with OrangeAcademy, averaging 15.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists while shooting 37.4% from 3 in the 2024-25 campaign, before he was sent down to the club's development team, Ratiopharm Ulm, for the 2025-26 season. His role was reduced, though he still helped the club finish as the Bundesliga runner-ups while averaging 5.4 points and 1.7 rebounds in 15.8 minutes per contest.

In between pro seasons, Anigbata made his international debut in 2024 during the FIBA U20 EuroBasket competition that was held in Poland, where he appeared in seven games for a German squad that finished No. 12 in the standings as he put up 5.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and a team-high 0.6 blocks per game. Anigbata's new Utah teammate, Yaacov, also competed in the event with his home Israel and finished No. 8 in the tournament in scoring with 15.6 points per game.

Time will tell how Utah's batch of newcomers blend with the small group of returners, though it would appear that the Utes are done making additions to their 2026-27 roster for the time being.

Welcome to SLC, @_alecanigbata‼️

🔗 https://t.co/6G8gNIIM0c #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/Q4yGcHbetW
— Utah Basketball (@UtahMBB) April 21, 2026

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