Arkansas could be adding another piece to the offseason frontcourt puzzle.
Per reports from Connor Goodson at HawgSports and Daniel Fair at HawgBeat, the Razorbacks are in talks with Russian center Ilia Frolov for the 2026-27 season.
John Calipari and his staff want to bring the big man to Fayetteville for a visit before locking anything down.
Frolov stands 6-foot-11 and weighs 225 pounds. He spent this past season playing for Real Madrid’s squad in the “Liga U”, a new under-22 league in Spain.
That league works as a development path, similar to how the NBA G-League helps players get reps below the top level. Real Madrid’s main team competes in the Liga ACB, the top pro league in the country.
His numbers stood out this year. Frolov averaged 13.5 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He also shot 52.8% from the field, 36% from three and 84.6% from the foul line.
A scout who spoke with HawgBeat said Frolov still has plenty of work ahead.
The scout noted he’s young and won’t be a major SEC contributor right away, pointing to a lack of explosiveness and physicality even though he rebounds well and shows skill and coordination.
Frolov has reportedly stepped away from his role with the Russian national team because of the Arkansas talks. He’s set to travel to the United States to handle paperwork needed to play college basketball next season.
Calipari and his staff plan to put him through workouts, drills and scrimmages once he arrives so they can get updated measurements and check his strength.
How this fits Arkansas’s frontcourt plans
If Frolov joins the Hogs, he’d slot into a frontcourt that already includes Finnish forward Miikka Muurinen, Furman transfer Cooper Bowser and former four-star Maper Maker.
Arkansas isn’t stopping there either.
The Razorbacks are also pursuing 2027 center prospect Caleb Ourigou as a possible reclassification candidate, and they officially offered the 6-foot-10, 215-pound four-star recently.
Arkansas also hosted 6-foot-11, 240-pound JUCO big man Shah Hall last week and remains in the mix for him too.
Sources say there could be obstacles with Hall but Arkansas hasn’t backed off.
Calipari said before Davion Thompson’s commitment that he only wanted to add one or two more pieces to finish out the 2026-27 roster.
Originally that meant Thompson plus one of Frolov, Ourigou or Hall. Now it looks like the Hogs could end up adding two of those three big men.
With Thompson’s commitment and his expected reclassification this summer, Arkansas has filled 13 of 15 roster spots for next season.
The front-court buildout is close to finished, but a few more pieces could still fall into place before the Razorbacks lock in their 2026-27 roster.
