Former Florida State forward finds new landing spot in the SEC

The Thomas Bassong era at Florida State is officially over. The former FSU forward has committed to Mississippi State, first reported by Jacob Bain, becoming the fourth member of Chris Jans' transfer portal class for the 2026-27 season. The commitment stings for FSU fans who watched Bassong grow into one of the program's most important players during the back half of last season.

During his lone season at Florida State, Bassong appeared in 33 games with 17 starts and averaged 5.9 points and 3.5 rebounds per game in 19.3 minutes per contest while shooting 49 percent from the floor. His best outing of the season came against Georgia Tech, where he scored 14 points on 6-8 shooting and pulled down 12 rebounds, a double-double that served as a coming-out moment for the 6-foot-8, 205-pound wing.

Bassong is from Paris, France, and played his high school basketball for Overtime Elite's Jelly Fam squad before arriving in Tallahassee. At OTE, he averaged 15.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.2 steals per game in 15.6 minutes, scoring in double figures in 16 of 20 games, including five 20-point outings, and finishing with four double-doubles.

He also represented his home country of France at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Switzerland during the summer of 2025, appearing in seven games and averaging 3.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, and nearly one assist per game.

Bassong was a top priority for Luke Loucks and the FSU staff to retain entering the offseason and had publicly committed to returning before a breakdown in contract negotiations led him to enter the transfer portal on the final day of the window.

At Mississippi State, he joins fellow transfer Kendyl Sanders from Utah, giving the Bulldogs another long, lengthy wing piece as Jans attempts to return the program to the NCAA Tournament after missing the field for the first time in his four-year tenure.

For Florida State, the departure further underscores the importance of Cooper Schwieger's last-minute addition and the development of AJ Swinton, who is recovering from a torn ACL, as the Seminoles look to replace the contribution of one of the most physically versatile forwards on their roster heading into Year 2 of the Loucks era.

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