Craig Smith and the Utah Utes basketball team added one final piece to a squad they hope to make some noise with in the Big 12 this season. The Runnin' Utes announced the signing of Israel big man, Joul Karram.
The Hapoel Yhuda Tel Aviv product is a 6-foot-10, 220-pound big man. He becomes the 13th scholarship player and finalizes the roster for the 2024-25 season. The addition gives the team depth ahead of their first season in the new conference.
Blessed. https://t.co/Vsa52ti1xn
— JoulKarram (@Joulkarram_) August 20, 2024
Of course, it is a bit premature to think that he could be a starter this season as he'll likely spend his first campaign on campus getting coached up and learning power conference basketball. However, the Utah Utes basketball program sees Karram as a developmental prospect with potential on both ends of the floor.
Utah Utes basketball adds final piece to first Big 12 roster
Last season, Karram averaged 13.6 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks. Perhaps most interestingly, he shot 43 percent from 3-point range with Hapoel Tel Aviv.
Smith and his staff have made a number of additions to the roster. Karram is the eighth and final offseason addition for the Runnin’ Utes. He joins Keanu Dawes, Mason Madsen, Zach Keller, Miro Little, Ezra Ausar, Mike Sharavjamts, and Ibrahima Traore in Utah’s incoming class.
It's a revamping of a roster that produced a good, but not great Utah Utes basketball team last season. They finished the 2023-24 campaign with a 22-15 record, while getting to the NIT semifinals.