Tennessee basketball’s newest 6-foot-8, 240-pound commit can throw it down on the court. On Tuesday morning, Tennessee received a commitment from The Bronx native Tobe Awaka. While Awaka is not ranked according to 247 Sports’ services, the New York power forward has come onto the scene in a big way as of late.
Awaka burst onto the scene in his senior year of high school at Cardinal Hayes and eventually was crowned the MVP of the league after averaging 19.2 points, 13.9 rebounds, and three blocks per game.
RealScout posted a clip to Youtube of Awaka dropping the hammer down a few months ago during a game on the high school circuit. Awaka was able to catch the ball over his shoulder while spinning on the block, all while keeping his defender shielded away with smart positioning on his hip before throwing down the one-handed slam on the help defender. And, of course, it also didn’t hurt that Awaka just purely has the size advantage with his large frame.
Vol Hoops: New York Power Forward Tobe Awaka Commits To Tennessee
While that dunk certainly shows the power, Awaka’s game is more expansive as a big man in today’s game of basketball. In the highlights below, Awaka shows the range to his offensive game with power moves near the rim, finesse moves in the paint, and even a few shots from behind the perimeter at times. The highlights below don’t entirely show the full aspect of Awaka’s defensive game, but there are a few blocks and swats here and there in the videos below as well.
Tobe Awaka (No. 00, Red Jersey) Hayes vs Stepinac – Time Codes Below
- 1:09 – Drive to the hoop
- 1:45 – Post up and finish
- 2:24 – Slam Dunk
- 2:54 – Three-pointer
- 3:24 – Three-pointer
- 4:03 – Hook shot
- 4:12 – Transition dunk
- 5:46 – Inside move
- 6:50 – Mid-range move
- 7:09 – Inside drive and shimmy
- 7:40 – Defensive block
- 8:21 – Crowd chants “Tobe”
Tobe Awaka (No. 00, White Jersey) Hayes vs Bergen – Time Codes Below
- 1:24 – Catch and shoot
- 2:04 – Post up/And-one
- 2:45 – Rebounds and putback
- 3:04 – Inside finish
- 7:29 – Inside finish
- 7:37 – Defensive block
- 7:49 – Pick and roll
- 9:08 – Defensive block
- 9:43 – Poster dunk in transition
- 10:20 – Cross-court assist
