Emmanuel Stephen transfers to UNLV

It is being reported by Sports Illustrated that UNLV and new head coach Josh Pastner have picked up a key player from the transfer portal.

The Runnin’ Rebels have welcomed seven-foot Emmanuel Stephen who transfer from Arizona.

Josh Pastner is in the process of rebuilding the Runnin’ Rebels which seen a significant loss with the firing of former coach Kevin Kruger.

Stephen is a seven-foot, 230-pound center from Nigeria, who was a four-star recruit coming out of high school.

Right out of high school, Stephen was recruited by the Kansas Jayhawks, Miami Hurricanes, Michigan Wolverines, and USC Trojans as well as the Arizona Wildcats.

Stephen’s last season at Arizona, he played a total of eight games and just 24 minutes due to an injury.

The last time we saw Stephen was in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against Akron. He scored once, played two minutes, and got a steal.

While limited by injury and the obvious youth, Stephen has a ton of potential for UNLV to nurture, however he will need to put in the work in the offseason to fit into coach Pastner’s new offense.

Coach Pastner is most known for having the ability to develop young talent, which is one of the reasons that UNLV brought him in.

With the offseason in full swing, UNLV and Josh Pastner will have more opportunity to continue to build the talent at UNLV for the future.