As we inch closer and closer to the beginning of the college basketball season each day, it seems like the hype surrounding basketball in Austin is now almost as widespread as the Lone Star State itself.
Rick Barnes club is entering the 2014-15 campaign as arguably the most celebrated he’s had during his now 17-year tenure as the Longhorns’ head coach, and with the highly-touted freshman, Myles Turner being welcomed to a roster that returns every member — with the exception of Martez Walker who was dismissed from the team – the expectations surrounding the Longhorns will be just as towering as their loaded front court as they enter the season among the top 10 in the country.
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But are the expectations as hype surrounding Texas well deserved? Is Texas really a threat to take the Big 12 by the neck and become the new king? Is a national championship a realistic goal for the Longhorns?
The central reason for such high praise for Texas begins with their massive frontcourt, which is the second largest in the country, behind only Kentucky.
With a lineup that includes 6’9” Cameron Ridley, 6’8” Jonathan Holmes, 6’11” Myles Turner, 6’9” Connor Lammert and the 6’10” Prince Ibeh, there’s no question that Texas will have a distinct size advantage on every single one of their opponents, outside of their Dec. 5 matchup with the Wildcats in Lexington, of course.
But there’s some pretty noteworthy skill infused with all that size Texas features.
Ridley is a walking double double and with a nice arsenal of low-post moves to compliment his staggering 285-pound frame, giving the Longhorns will have their anchor in the paint in the form of a future NBA talent.
Texas’ senior leader in Holmes will see a majority of minutes on the perimeter this season with the arrival of Turner, but the Horns’ leading scorer last season will become even more of a threat this season as he will play both in the paint and on the perimeter.
Turner is, as we all know, just a special talent who could become one of the best Texas has ever seen. He has range beyond the three-point line and the explosiveness in the paint to dominate on both sides of the ball.
Lammert has the ability to stretch the floor and rebound well, while Ibeh is another brute force in the paint and will allow Texas to give the starers a rest and not miss a beat from a size and talent standpoint.
But Texas has much more than just their overwhelmingly massive frontcourt and the most notable is their sophomore point guard, Isaiah Taylor, who will be featured on the upcoming regional cover of Sports Illustrated’s college basketball preview issue.
Taylor was arguably the biggest reason Texas resurfaced into college basketball relevance last season after becoming one of the best young guards in the country with 12.7 points and four assists per game. He’ll be expected to take his game even further in his second season and should be among the very elite guards by the time March Madness arrives.
Texas also adds a very streaky-scoring Javan Felix to the mix, along with Demarcus Holland, Damarcus Croaker, Kendal Yancy and ESPN 100 freshman Jordan Barnett.
This may seem like I just went down the roster and listed every player I could and talked about them as if they will actually see significant time and have an impact, but that just speaks to the depth and variety Barnes will have to pick and choose from this season.
Outside of Turner and Barnett, every one of these guys are returners and know what it takes to become a successful team, and after an offseason of development and sitting through the pain of their NCAA Tournament loss, Texas’ return to the court will be one that will be remembered as one of the best season’s in program history.
So to answer my question … yes, the hype is very real. Not only is Texas a legitimate threat to contend for the Big 12 title, but I also believe they’re the favorites over the Jayhawks.
And even further, the possibility of seeing this team still playing during the last two games of the entire season in Indianapolis is something that can be expected as well, if they live up to their potential.
Get ready folks, Texas basketball is back and they’re about to make some serious noise.