After posting a 12-20 record in his third year at the helm in Happy Valley, Mike Rhoades has gone for a total offseason overhaul, tearing his roster down to the studs and building it back up with veteran additions from the Transfer Portal. That five-player portal class includes 6-foot-11 center Tim Oboh from Buffalo.
While Oboh committed to the Nittany Lions on April 19, Penn State officially announced a completed deal with the veteran on Tuesday, May 26. In a statement about the deal, Mike Rhoades called Oboh, “a tough, physical and reliable presence in our frontcourt. He has a strong motor and will give us positive contributions with his rebounding, defense and finishing ability around the rim. His size, toughness and experience are great fits for Penn State!”
Big-time frontcourt presence coming to Happy Valley 📍#WeAre | https://t.co/Dx8sX5aCAs pic.twitter.com/xr5P6pg8HS
— Penn State Men’s Basketball (@PennStateMBB) May 26, 2026
Tim Oboh is officially locked in with Penn State
The Buffalo transfer originally hails from Oprington, England, before spending the last two seasons at Buffalo. In the 2025-26 campaign, he started all 32 games for the Bulls and averaged 8.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in 21.1 minutes. He’s an imposing force who has filled out during his college career, and he’ll fit well into the Penn State front court next to returning seven-foot Croatian sophomore, Ivan Juric.
Juric is an interior big who shot just 28.3 percent from three on 1.8 attempts last season. However, the Nittany Lions’ leading rebounder a year ago didn’t provide much in the way of rim protection. He averaged 0.2 blocks per game in 26.4 minutes, while as a team, Penn State averaged 1.7 blocks per game.
Penn State desperately needs the rim protection Oboh is expected to provide, which is why the Nittany Lions needed to get this deal officially done after his commitment last month. While he fits a very specific role on the roster and in the front court, Oboh is also part of a larger philosophical shift for Rhoades heading into his fourth season.
After two seasons with Ace Baldwin Jr. leading the Nittany Lions to winning seasons, Penn State bet big on Kayden Mingo, the highest-rated recruit in program history. Mingo showed flashes, but the freshman guard was inefficient. Then, after just one season, he’s already heading to Baylor with his five-star younger brother Dylan, who originally chose UNC over Penn State before the coaching change in Chapel Hill.
Rather than bet on 18-year-olds to turn Penn State around, Rhoades has looked to get older with veteran transfers and older European pickups from overseas. Oboh, as an English transfer, fits both categories, and after today’s announcement, he’s officially a Nittany Lion. Had something fallen through with his deal, though it’s very late in the process, he could have still de-committed and transferred elsewhere because he entered the portal before the window closed.
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