Ross Hodge is Ecstatic About the Addition of Utah Transfer Seydou Traore

The former Ute is officially a Mountaineer.

WVU Athletics Communications

Over the weekend, the West Virginia Mountaineers plucked from within the league out of the transfer portal, gaining a commitment from former Utah forward Seydou Traore (6'6", 220 lbs). On Monday, he officially became a Mountaineer, putting pen to paper.

"We are really excited to add Seydou to our WVU men's basketball program," Hodge said in a press release. "He has experience playing in several of the top conferences in the country and has competed against the best teams and players in college basketball. Seydou is a two-way player with great size and length who can impact the game in a lot of different ways. He brings a competitive edge and maturity that will be felt throughout our entire program."

Look, I'm not one who usually reads too deep into things, but I have a gut feeling Hodge absolutely loves what Traore brings to the table. In most of these press releases, he gives a couple of sentences, three at most, on the player.

This is in no way saying he's not as excited about the others, but there's an excitement and probably some relief knowing he has a Chance Moore-esque player (who can shoot) on the roster that has 86 career games under his belt and has played in this league. He knows what to expect on a nightly basis, so there won't be any adjustment to the level of competition whatsoever. He's been through the grind.

It's been a roller coaster ride for Traore over the first three years of his career. He was one of the best players on Manhattan's roster as a true freshman two years ago, struggled to find high-end minutes after making his jump up to the high major level at Iowa, but found success in his role with the Utes this past season.

Relationships are key in this business, even in the day and age of NIL. West Virginia pursued Traore a year ago when he entered the portal, departing Iowa, but of course landed with Utah. That prior connection made it a pretty easy recruitment for both sides. Hodge and Co. knew what they would be getting and how he would fit, and Traore knew what the staff was like and what would be asked of him in the system.

Traore will have one year of eligibility remaining under the current eligibility rules, which, of course, could change if the 5-for-5 rule passes.