Chris Collins' program has extended an offer to a seven-footer with upside potential.
The Northwestern Wildcats' basketball program is going through a changing of the guard under coach Chris Collins with recent stars Nick Martinelli and Brooks Barnhizer in the NBA and a large influx of new players on campus.
Collins has coached at Northwestern since 2013-14 and last led the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament in 2024. This season, the Wildcats will experience plenty of roster turnover with two new freshmen and eight new transfers in Evanston.
On Wednesday, word broke of Northwestern basketball's latest scholarship offer, which was extended to a three-star center with high upside potential from the Class of 2028.
Mar 10, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Northwestern Wildcats head coach Chris Collins directs his team against the Penn State Nittany Lions during the first half at United Center. Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images Mamadou Barry Announces NU Offer
Class of 2028 three-star center Mamadou Barry announced he has received an offer from Collins' program on Wednesday, calling himself "blessed" and thanking the NU coaching staff.
"Blessed to receive an offer from Northwestern!" Barry wrote. "Thank you (assistant) coach (Chris) Lowery for coming to watch me and the coaching staff for believing in me," he added with praying hands and purple heart emojis
Barry plays for the St. John Vianney Golden Griffins of St. Louis, Mo. He has continued to grow throughout his young high school career and is now listed at 7-foot-2, 225 pounds by 247Sports.com.
"He's agile, runs the floor well, and has good court and body awareness to gather and finish shots," youth tournament organization ThreatHoops wrote about Barry.
"He's also able to face up and knock down shots in the lane."
Barry Counts Missouri, St. Louis Among Offers
Northwestern will face competition from in-state hoops programs the Missouri Tigers and St. Louis Billikens for Barry's services as the 2028 center counts them both among his offers so far.
Other offers have come from Lindenwood, Oral Roberts and Southeast Missouri State. Barry is ranked as the third best player in the state of Missouri for 2028, the 147th best player nationally and the 18th best player nationally at his position according to Rivals.
Rivals currently gives the Wildcats a 25% chance to land Barry, slightly behind the Tigers at 28.6%.
Barry looks like he could be a similar player to Northwestern freshman center Symon Ghai, who will enter Evanston as one of two four-star prospects from the Class of 2026 along with Jayden Hodge.
Barry, whose middle name is djan according to his social media, looks like he could be a great fit for a Wildcats program that has lagged behind in the frontcourt positions compared to other Big Ten schools.
He may be a bit of a project at this stage in his career, but he boasts impressive attributes for a player his size making him a potential starter at the college level.
