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Stay, Go, Hello: Roster outlook for Texas Longhorns basketball in 2022-23

ByBRANDON JENKINS 15 minutes ago

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 Chris Beard's first season at the University of Texas ended in the Round of 32. Although the Longhorns fell to a loaded Purdue squad, this past season remained a success as the program got past the first round of the Big Dance for the first time in seven years.

Now fans will look forward to the roster movements to get prepared for the program's first season in the new Moody Arena. Who will Texas be saying its final goodbyes to, who may have decisions to make, who is back and what help is on the way for the 2022-23 season?

SAY GOODBYE TO ...

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(Photo: Scott Wachter, USA TODAY Sports)

First and foremost on this list of departures are Longhorn lifers Andrew Jones and Courtney Ramey. It has been a long road for both guards, especially Jones with his nearly two-year battle with leukemia. However, both managed to stick it out through the Smart-to-Beard transition for the better of the team and became fan favorites. 

Designated shooter Jase Febres also stuck it out through five years in Austin and will finish his career with over 200 made three-pointers.

First-year transfers Marcus Carr, Timmy Allen, and Christian Bishop all made immediate contributions in their first year in Austin. Allen led the Horns in points and rebounds while Carr led the squad in assists. Both walked away with all-conference honors this season. Their time in Austin was short-lived but each brought their own flavor in their lone year at Texas.

DECISIONS TO MAKE ...

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(Photo: Getty)

Jones, Ramey, Carr, and Bishop all have the option to utilize their covid year of eligibility and play for a fifth year, but the chances of each doing so are not likely.

The departure of each player will likely cause the staff to spend another offseason patrolling the transfer portal to find talent that fits Beard's motion offense and gritty style of play.

WELCOME BACK...

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(Photo: Scott Wachter, USA TODAY Sports)

Transfers will certainly play a role in the outcome of next year's roster but for now the Longhorns are expected to return redshirt junior Brock Cunningham and underclassmen transfers Devin Askew and Dylan Disu.

Cunningham is a glue-guy forward who will continue to bring a level of relentlessness to securing every fifty-fifty ball and doing the little things to ensure team success. With a year under his belt, look for Askew to be more confident in a larger role with the graduation of the team's starting guards. Missing the first portion of the season due to injury, Disu should come in next year with his feet under him and should be one of the team's top contributors next season after posting career-lows during a year of major adjustment. Disu began to flash towards the end of the season. 

SAY HELLO ...

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(Photo: Nike EYBL / Jon Lopez)

The Longhorns are bringing in a three-man recruiting class that ranks top 10 in the country and second overall in the Big 12.

The prize of the class will be small forward Dillon Mitchell, who is suited for Chris Beard's style of play thanks to his natural gifts as an elite defensive playmaker. The No. 14 player in the 247Sports Composite, Mitchell will earn immediate playing time because of his ability to slide his feet, deflect passes, and time block shots while guarding the ball.

Point guard signee Arterio Morris is undeniably the most talented prospect of the bunch. The No. 19 player in the 247Sports Composite has a ton of upside but productivity will depend on how much time he spends polishing his entire game. There are some Ja Morant/John Wall qualities in his game but Morris will need to put in the work to achieve that potential during his time on the Forty AcrGuardGuard Rowan Brumbaugh was a late addition to the class in December after he decided to back out of his pledge from Northwestern. The No. 79 player in the 247Sports Composite will be a multi-year guy who the staff is excited about long-term because of his positional size at the guard position and his feel for the game with the ball in his hands.

As far as the transfer portal goes, Beard will need to replace his outgoing guys and will almost assuredly try to get bigger in the frontcourt.

 

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28 minutes ago, gsoda3 said:

why were we not interested in yohan traore?  seems like a beard guy on paper.

Offered him in May of last year. Lost the recruitment to Will Wade. Contacted him after he reopened his recruitment following Wade’s termination. He wasn’t interested.

I’ve said it a ton already, but there’s a limited number of bigs who are capable of playing in Beard’s defense, fewer who are willing to give it a shot, and fewer still who are actually successful at it. Then add how many of those have any sort of offensive game. Texas is looking for unicorns, basically. Which means it will likely be some kind of combination of 6’7 to 6’9 guys defending the interior year after year, with maybe someone taller once in a blue moon. And they’ll probably be a project playing limited minutes. 

Big guys don’t want to play in Beard’s defense, and big guys don’t want to play in Beard’s offense.

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17 minutes ago, HtownHorn said:

Beard offered him. Maybe Traore wasn't interested in Texas. He's likely heading to Auburn after decommitting from LSU.

If he wasn't interested in us, so be it.  Maybe he watched our season and was like, nah, I see myself as a better fit elsewhere.  No big deal - let's not dip into the "if we were interested, we'd be in the top 4!" or "I guess *WE* weren't interested in him" stuff.  Sometimes it is not reciprocated and that's okay.

There will be plenty of guys we will go after and *gasp* we will also be turned down by a lot of them, for many different reasons. 

Edited by Js1
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14 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

It's not as if Auburn isn't a viable choice compared to Texas, given this year's results.  Beard is going to have to put guys in the league out of Austin before certain blue chips and transfers will consider playing here.

For me the biggest things are to take care of some of the basics. Make sure the program is competitive in terms of NIL pay and any other quality of life benefits. Win at a high level - Sweet 16 and better - on a regular basis. Make sure our shoe relationships are solid, whether with Nike, or through TJ Ford, adidas, if that’s a part of the puzzle. Get in on kids early. 

Those things will help overcome the allergic reaction big men are going to experience with Beard versus other coaches. 

If everythig else is there, the main thing will be winning. The right players for Beard will be willing to sacrifice in different ways to win. Having players get to the NBA is a huge deal, but the vast majority of players that get to the NBA had that potential before they ever got on a college campus, even if colleges and their head coaches are attributed some level of contribution, merited or not. 

The good news is it shouldn’t be as difficult to recruit wing type players. I don’t want to say Timmy Allen was given unlimited freedom on the court per se, but Beard’s offense is terrific at showcasing big backcourt players who can score at three levels (and Allen could only score at two). Think about what Purdue’s Ivey would have looked like, or even KU’s Agbaji. Maybe Dillon Mitchell can develop into that kind of player. Or maybe a portal player is a poor man’s version of it. 

One thing I’ll say. This system creates open looks and open lanes to the basket. Just need the players who can take advantage of it. 

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Gerry Hamilton also said "I do not think Maligi is the last change on staff."

Going to guess that Howard might be bouncing to another job. Sounds like Ogden might be given the option to become one of the 3 assistants who can recruit off-campus.

Edited by Hookem2147
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I like Rowan Brumbaugh a lot.  I think he's going to play a lot next season unless we bring in a transfer who soaks up a lot of minutes.  I could see him playing more of a true PG and letting Morris and Co. focus on being scorers.  Dillon Mitchell is an athletic freak.

 

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20 minutes ago, Rockethorn1978 said:

Damn isn’t he our recruiting rainmaker?

Not really. He came over from Texas Tech. He is supposed to be a very good recruiter.

Howard was Bill Self’s bag man at KU. I don’t know that I’d call him a rainmaker, but he was hired for his ability to navigate the various shoe relationships in AAU. That was a big deal for Howard to come over. He played for Self at Illinois and was a long time assistant at KU. After the KU games, especially the one in Lawrence, you could see Self and the other KU assistants basically walked right past Howard in the post game handshake line, after being warm with Beard. Better than a Juwan Howard slap across the head, but it was still pretty cold blooded. 

Terry was a good recruiter for Barnes. Not my fav. I liked Lanier, Haith, and Shepherd a lot better. Fairly or not, I blame Terry for not getting Williams. Either he couldn’t bring him over after convincing the kid to follow him from Fresno State to UTEP, or he was an ineffective advocate for him to Beard. 

It will be interesting to me to see if Beard moves Donewald or Ogden into that assistant position or goes after another high profile recruiter. @SizzleChest mentioned it already, but I really don’t want to lose Donewald. He’s the best talent developer on the staff, and I’m hopeful his international connections are going to pay dividends at some point. 

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6 minutes ago, RollingPresidential said:

Is there any chance he hires an offensive guru to spice up the Motion offense?

Donewald is basically the ‘offensive coordinator’ for Beard. Don’t see him bringing in anyone else to tinker with the offense.

Beard’s offense is what it is at this point. It’s worked at a reasonably high level when the pieces are there. He’s run it at 3 different stops now and part of hiring him was accepting that the offense isn’t going to look pretty at times but the defense and toughness wins in March. I’m sure he’d open up the offense a little more if he had a play making ball handler and athletic bigs (hi, Morris and Mitchell), but the overall look of it is never changing.

I can’t see him ever handing over the reigns of his offense to someone else or overhauling his system.

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41 minutes ago, RollingPresidential said:

Is there any chance he hires an offensive guru to spice up the Motion offense?

Spice it up how? The motion offense produced a shit ton of wide open shots so unless spice it up means hitting open shots then yea. 
 

The offensive scheme is fine, it’s getting shooters in here is the answer. 

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53 minutes ago, Hookem2147 said:

Donewald is basically the ‘offensive coordinator’ for Beard. Don’t see him bringing in anyone else to tinker with the offense.

Beard’s offense is what it is at this point. It’s worked at a reasonably high level when the pieces are there. He’s run it at 3 different stops now and part of hiring him was accepting that the offense isn’t going to look pretty at times but the defense and toughness wins in March. I’m sure he’d open up the offense a little more if he had a play making ball handler and athletic bigs (hi, Morris and Mitchell), but the overall look of it is never changing.

I can’t see him ever handing over the reigns of his offense to someone else or overhauling his system.

 

21 minutes ago, Rockethorn1978 said:

Spice it up how? The motion offense produced a shit ton of wide open shots so unless spice it up means hitting open shots then yea. 
 

The offensive scheme is fine, it’s getting shooters in here is the answer. 

Pretty much.  The offense will improve with better overall talent, including shooting.

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22 minutes ago, Rockethorn1978 said:

Spice it up how? The motion offense produced a shit ton of wide open shots so unless spice it up means hitting open shots then yea. 
 

The offensive scheme is fine, it’s getting shooters in here is the answer. 

Man I disagree and I bet synergy numbers back me up on this stat.  The % of open shots had to have gone down from last year.  Obviously the talent drop off from last year is a big part of it as well as the drop off in the amount of 3s we shot this year, but the scheme is hella tight and limits the amount of space players have. There are way too many players aligned inside of the 3pt line for my taste. 

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5 minutes ago, Catdaddyhorn said:

Man I disagree and I bet synergy numbers back me up on this stat.  The % of open shots had to have gone down from last year.  Obviously the talent drop off from last year is a big part of it as well as the drop off in the amount of 3s we shot this year, but the scheme is hella tight and limits the amount of space players have. There are way too many players aligned inside of the 3pt line for my taste. 

Beard loosened things up in January.  He was all Norman Dale in November and December, but realized he couldn't have guys passing up good shots just for the sake of ball movement.  I think the offense loosens up more the more he trusts the players.  It's not a binary thing.

Edited by SizzleChest
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We shot 32.3% from 3 as a team (our worse % since 2018). That is so so so bad. Even improving to just 35% next year means things look completely different from a PPG and scoring perspective.

The 2021 team shot 35.6% from 3, for reference.

Edited by Hookem2147
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Gerry when asked what his option was about these moves:

I'm going to wait until the coaching staff is finalized to have an opinion on that. Beard will make strong hires, but not sure which direction he will go with the hires. That's why I can't give a confident answer right now. 

Whoever comes to Texas has to be more than willing to grind in the office until 1-2am during the season a lot of nights. That's not a negative on Beard, or the coaches that won't return, but it is what it is. 

Beard has to find his fits on the staff, and on the court IMO.

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26 minutes ago, Catdaddyhorn said:

Man I disagree and I bet synergy numbers back me up on this stat.  The % of open shots had to have gone down from last year.  Obviously the talent drop off from last year is a big part of it as well as the drop off in the amount of 3s we shot this year, but the scheme is hella tight and limits the amount of space players have. There are way too many players aligned inside of the 3pt line for my taste. 

You might be right and I’m going off the eye test of watching games. I saw a ton of wide open shots becaise we had good ball movement and off the ball movement happening. 
 

obviously great talent and great shooters help any offense in college so I think if we get that with beard as our coach we will be fine.

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2 hours ago, Hookem2147 said:

 Sounds like Ogden might be given the option to become one of the 3 assistants who can recruit off-campus.

 

Maybe not according to Jeff Howe...

Quote

247 post:  "Beard will probably just promote Ogden"

Jeff Howe response:  I thought that, but I'm told Ogden really likes the role he's in right now.

 

Edited by LTtxfan
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Just now, dcar00 said:

oh yeah forgot about Disu.  I also keep forgetting that Davis is an idiot.  basically no one is a guarantee any more, even Brock.

 “Chris Beard has yet to confirm he’s going to return as the coach next year.” 

- Brian Davis (probably)

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1 hour ago, Rockethorn1978 said:

You might be right and I’m going off the eye test of watching games. I saw a ton of wide open shots becaise we had good ball movement and off the ball movement happening. 
 

obviously great talent and great shooters help any offense in college so I think if we get that with beard as our coach we will be fine.

There was definitely more movement this year but it was all seemingly within 15ft of each other.  

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56 minutes ago, Catdaddyhorn said:

There was definitely more movement this year but it was all seemingly within 15ft of each other.  

I agree and I think stuff like spacing gets improved the longer you play in this system. I saw some clumping up even in the tournament where they seemed confused becaise things were coming fast and furious. I hope we get most of not all back that can just for the continuity of roster and then playing with chemistry.

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44 minutes ago, Hookem2147 said:

Let’s go!

 

That sends such a strong message. He was the second portal player to declare for Texas (Devin Askew was first) and now he gets an early jump on announcing a return for his COVID season. 

It encourages the other players with a year left to say yes as well. It signals playing under Beard may be tough, but if you put in the work it’s fulfilling. And he’s an interior player. Nice bit of momentum to start off the off-season courtesy of Mr. Bishop. It’s very much appreciated. 

Oh, and the more players that return, the easier it is to solidify the culture, without almost starting from scratch again. 

Edited by SL Xpress
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4 minutes ago, SL Xpress said:

That sends such a strong message. He was the second portal player to declare for Texas (Devin Askew was first) and now he gets an early jump on announcing a return for his COVID season. 

It encourages the other players with a year left to say yes as well. It signals playing under Beard may be tough, but if you put in the work it’s fulfilling. And he’s an interior player. Nice bit of momentum to start off the off-season courtesy of Mr. Bishop. It’s very much appreciated. 

Oh, and the more players that return, the easier it is to solidify the culture, without almost starting from scratch again. 

COME ON TIMMY JUST DO IT 

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If Allen can graduate transfer, he might explore an offense where he can be the focal point against lesser competition to put up big numbers and make himself more marketable to foreign teams.  He could probably be a 20 pt per game guy in another league.  If he has foreign job offers, he should jump at them.  He's not NBA material. 

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18 minutes ago, Goodman said:

Ogden being promoted short term in order to recruit on the road is what I understood mentioned, not becoming a full time coach.

Yep, and it’s not a “promotion”.  Ogden is likely just being temporarily activated to recruit on the road like certain football staff are whenever there is football coaching turnover.

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I mean I don’t wanna sound cliché but having better players is gonna make the offense way better. Think if we had Matt Coleman on this team, someone that could consistently beat the defender off the dribble and get into the paint. Then it’s just up to the player to make the right read from there (not saying Matt Coleman was amazing, but he was way better than any PG we had this year)

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8 minutes ago, RabidM said:

If Allen can graduate transfer, he might explore an offense where he can be the focal point against lesser competition to put up big numbers and make himself more marketable to foreign teams.  He could probably be a 20 pt per game guy in another league.  If he has foreign job offers, he should jump at them.  He's not NBA material. 

Man get this stupid shit out of here. He's either moving on or coming back. He isn't transferring. 

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