Jamaican college basketball player Kofi Cockburn has a presence on the court that cannot be missed. A still-growing force, the 7-foot, 285-pound star is a huge center that can’t be contained, and the talented player is the embodiment of the “big man on campus (BMOC)”. Widely regarded as the most dominant big man in the US, the youngster averaged 17.7 points, 1.3 blocks and 9.5 rebounds in his sophomore season, and earned second-team All-American and first-team All-Big Ten honours.

Cockburn was born in Kingston, Jamaica and attended high school in Virginia and New York, attracting recruiting offers from all over the Big East, ACC and SEC. He first visited Illinois in December 2018, and although he witnessed the team lose to Florida Atlantic on that occasion there has been plenty of winning since he arrived and Cockburn has been the big man right at the centre of it all.

Although Cockburn might not seem at first glance as the most natural fit in today’s NBA, the rapidly rising star has made a fantastic job of working on his body over the past few years and has become more lean, quick and explosive. Recently Cockburn took charge at Illionois and has since got the team aiming high, and the promising center is looking increasingly like a first round pic with a big future ahead of him.