Mick Cronin and the UCLA Bruins saw another potential transfer leave the portal on Wednesday with former Baylor Bear Tounde Yessoufou committing to St. John’s. Yessoufou was rumored to the Bruins, who remain in need of an experienced scorer to round out their roster.
UCLA will have to turn their focus elsewhere, with Yessoufou taking a deal that’s reportedly worth around $7 million dollars to join Rick Pitino with the Red Storm. St. John’s is coming off of a 30-7 season which ended in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
Just before the NBA Draft withdrawal deadline, Tounde Yessoufou committed to St. John’s for upwards of $7 million, a source involved in the process told me.
Yessoufou, a Baylor transfer, chose the Red Storm over #UCLA and others because St. John’s, a non-football school, could…
— Aaron Heisen (@aaron_heisen) May 28, 2026
According to reporter Aaron Heisen, UCLA was very much in the mix for Yessoufou. A source “on the financial side of the process” told Heisen that UCLA “did everything” to try and add Yessoufou to a Bruins roster that’s missing a No. 1 offensive threat.
Yessoufou averaged 17.8 points per game as a freshman last season in the Big 12 Conference. The 6’5” guard added 5.9 rebounds and 2.0 steals.
The source also told Heisen that UCLA had a “competitive offer” for Yessoufou but weren’t able to match the deal he ultimately signed with St. John’s. It wasn’t Yessoufou’s first time passing on Cronin and the Bruins, UCLA recruited the guard out of high school before Yessoufou eventually committed to Baylor.
A source told Heisen that UCLA wasn’t able to match St. John’s fully guaranteed revenue share deal, due to the Big Ten Conference’s revenue sharing guidelines.
Wow UCLA misses on Tounde Yessoufou https://t.co/VxnHai84Cf
— Connor Morrissette (@C_Morrissette) May 28, 2026
Regardless of the ‘why’ behind it, the Bruins are still without a truly elite scoring threat as we inch closer to the 2026-2027 season. UCLA will turn to Eric Dailey Jr. and Trent Perry to lead the way for Cronin’s offense.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: Tounde Yessoufou chooses St. John’s over UCLA in the transfer portal
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