After a complete offseason rebuild, LSU basketball has its 14-man roster for the 2026-27 season.

Coach Will Wade and his staff took an abnormal route to find a new group of players to rep purple and gold. Most of the roster is comprised of international players and fifth-year seniors exhausting their college ball eligibility. While there is a lot of basketball experience, there’s a new face in every corner of the Tigers’ locker room.

With so many new faces, having dependable bigs, particularly at the forward position, is key for Wade's team to have a smooth transition, especially in SEC play where size plays a big role. The Tigers will turn to a player with plenty of SEC experience this season in Kentucky transfer Mo Dioubate. Here are three things to know about the Tigers' senior forward, who began his career at Alabama before becoming a Wildcat and now a Tiger.

Mo Dioubate has been dunking since a pre-teen

Listed at 6-foot-8 and 235 pounds, Dioubate has been athletic nearly his whole life. At 14, the Queens, New York-native dunked for the first time at his neighborhood park. Since then, the forward hasn't hesitated to take to the air and show off his mad hops.

In high school, Dioubate was a four-star prospect, ranked the No. 18 power forward in the country by 247Sports and No. 74 player overall for the Class of 2022-23. While playing on the EYBL circuit in 2022, he finished with the most points scored around the rim (309).

An all-around weapon

The Tigers are getting a do-it-all weapon in Dioubate. The high-motor forward can score at all three levels, averaging close to nine points and six rebounds last season for Kentucky. He shot 54.2% from the field that season while also racking up an impressive 171 total rebounds.

From beyond the arc, Dioubate’s best season came in his final year at Alabama in 2024-25, when he made 12 3-pointers while shooting 46.2%. Defensively, he’s finished the past two seasons with 30 steals or more and over 20 blocks.

Second time’s a charm

Dioubate has been on Wade’s radar well before the coach decided to return to LSU for his second stint with the Tigers. When Wade was coaching at NC State, he tried to get Dioubate to Raleigh, recruiting him when he entered the transfer portal.

While the first time around work out, the second time was the charm. LSU’s location and closing out his entire career in the SEC played a big role Dioubate's decision to come to Baton Rouge.