Andre Allen

Arizona State added to a position of need Friday morning by signing junior college power forward Andre Allen.

A 6-foot-9 power forward at Arizona Western Community College in Yuma, Arizona, Allen signed during his visit to the school this week, giving the Sun Devils some much-needed depth in a frontcourt that is losing graduating seniors Zylan Cheatham and De'Quon Lake. Redshirt freshman forward Uros Plavsic has also put his name in the transfer portal in recent weeks, potentially making 6-foot-8 junior Romello White the only returning experienced post player on the team.

Allen could be a solution inside. A month ago, he received a release from his National Letter of Intent to Buffalo after head coach Nate Oats left to take the head job at Alabama. Oats initially worked for Hurley at Buffalo before the ASU head coach landed in Tempe. Allen and ASU's coaches have been in touch since he received his release. Leading up to his visit, Allen said was at the top of his list.

"I can be transparent about it," he said last week. "Arizona State is probably where I'll go. I've done my homework. It's a great program, close to home, I've studied the Pac-12 as a west coast kid, always been a dream of mine to play in the league and be close to home. Bobby Hurley is a great guy, was on the coaching staff with Nate Oats at Buffalo.

"I like (ASU point guard) Remy Martin and would like to play with him. They're a run-and-gun team and I think I would fit in good with the program. I love the situation with Arizona State. I'm definitely going to visit this week. They're just getting some [logistical] things worked out and I'll be there."

Allen will join incoming 6-foot-9 freshman Jalen Graham as the other front-court signee in the Sun Devils' class this season. He is also the second junior college transfer ASU has signed this year, joining high-scoring guard Alonzo Verge. He is the fifth member of ASU's 2019 signing class overall, which ranks 38th in the country according to 247Sports Composite.

A Los Angeles native who bounced around in high school between Price, Westchester and Balboa Prep, Allen said he didn't really start to take basketball seriously until the last few years. But he blossomed at Arizona Western last season, averaging 13.3 points and 8.4 rebounds as a sophomore, as well as shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 68.6 percent from the free throw line. He comes to ASU with two seasons of Division I eligibility.

"Anybody who knows me can vouch for the fact that I'm a late bloomer," Allen said. "I've had my ups and downs with the game but I've only recently started to understand what work ethic means and the type of opportunities that basketball can provide for me and I got so good (recently). I took my body seriously, got good coaching, really settled in and that's led to a lot of colleges being interested. I already have a 7-foot-1 wingspan and a lot of the physical tangibles but I've really started to take the game seriously and what it can do for me."

Allen said many coaches reached out after he received his release from Buffalo. Connecticut, Florida, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, San Diego State and Virginia Tech have been in touch and Florida is trying to get him on campus for an official visit on May 12. But he prefers to stay in the West.

"It was a lot of high-majors and mid-majors wanting me to visit but I didn't want to commute out to the east coast or whatever if I can just play at a great school in the Pac-12," Allen said. "If the visit goes well, barring anything crazy happening I'll go to ASU. It's late in the game for me. I'm not rushing anything at this point and if the visit goes well I'll end up a Sun Devil for sure."