Arkansas' Forgotten 7-Footer Has Opportunity to Make His Mark Under Calipari

FAYETTEVILLE — One returning Razorback who continues to fly under the radar is sophomore big man Paulo Semedo.

The 7-foot-1, 225 pound big man announced he would return to Arkansas following his redshirt season. He was a late addition to the 2025 recruiting class, but never saw any action on the floor during the regular season.

A native of Luanda, Angola, Semedo played at West Oaks Academy in Orland, Fla., where he was considered a top-50 prospect and No. 6 overall center in his class, according to ESPN. A member of the PRO16 circuit, he averaged 16 points and 12 rebounds per game with Team Scoot.

He chose the Razorbacks over offers from Arizona State, Miami and Florida State. While his development remained a mystery during the offseason, former Arkansas assistant coach and current radio commentator Matt Zimmerman opened the door for fans to understand the type of player Semedo is earlier this spring.

"Paulo was here for a portion of the summer, and I think that coming in, they felt like, this is a guy that, with what we have coming back, we're probably going to red-shirt and we're going to develop him," Zimmerman said. "He was a young guy. He had reclassified. He's a young dude.

"So they felt like a year here, he can get bigger, he can he can eat better, he can get all the attention with our strength coach, Dave Richardson, and he can practice against Trevor and Nick and Malik Hewitt every day, and he can get better."

What kept Semedo from contributing as a true freshman was an injury that hindered his development to mostly extra work away from the practice court, according to Zimmerman.

"He could do some drills," Zimmerman said. "He could do some things, but really, toward the end of the season, his development became individual workout sessions with the assistant coaches, more so after practice, before practice, getting extra work, whether it was at night time. It wasn't as much in practice anymore because we were moving on down the road with trying to win this championship."

Speaking of championships, that's exactly what Calipari and the rest of his Arkansas team is focused on anyway. He even alluded to that point last Wednesday during his appearance at SEC Media Days.

"We have a group that thinks they can, but they have no idea what that would take," Calipari said. "That's part of what my job is, teaching them how to win, how to play in tough games."

But what will Semedo's role actually be in all this because there's at least 12 players who are battling for minutes this season.

“I’ll be trying to play nine or 10 guys,” Calipari said. “I’m looking around this room, most of you probably don’t really know basketball, what would you think I should do if I’m trying to play nine or 10? Probably press, would you say? Then play really fast so they can only play three or four minutes at a time.

“That means you still have to be disciplined. If we block shots, we are really fast. Last year we were really fast. I hate to tell you, this team may be faster.”

Jordan Smith Jr., Billy Richmond III, Jeremiah Wilkinson, Miikka Muurinen and Cooper Bowser are all likely starters.

JJ Andrews and Abdou Toure could certainly challenge the guys ahead of them for greater roles.

That could leave Davion Thompson, Caleb Ourigou, Maper Maker, Ilia Frolov and Semedo competing for the remaining two or three spots in Calipari's rotation.

For Semedo, that creates an interesting situation entering his second year with the program. His legitimate 7-foot-5 wingspan can impact opponent's shot selection and provide the Razorbacks a versatile weapon who can guard multiple positions.

If he can figure out a way to rebound, block shots and holding his own on the defensive end on a consistent basis, it'll go a long way in determining whether or not he earns an opportunity at extensive playing time as a sophomore.

After spending his first season watching from the bench, the challenge for him now is showing that his development has prepared him to contribute to a team with championship expectations.

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