Who is Even Left on the Texas Tech Basketball Roster?
There's been a ton of information swirling about Texas Tech basketball since last Thursday, April 1st, which turned out to be the worst April Fool's joke ever that was actually true. You know, Chris Beard leaving for Texas blah blah blah. Enough about Chris Beard.
Since last Thursday, there have been a billion rumors and posts on social media and message boards that have made the situation around Mark Adams' first week as Red Raider head coach that much more of a whirlwind.
Now that there has been some time that's passed and the smoke is settling a bit around the program the roster is also starting to shake out.
Let's first talk about who is leaving. Though he was technically never here, high school senior Jaylon Tyson won't be making the trip to Lubbock. Instead, he'll go to Austin with Chris Beard.
After announcing that he'd stay after the hiring of Mark Adams, Kyler Edwards never withdrew his name from the transfer portal. Texas Tech basketball confirmed that Edwards would keep his name in the portal and the announcement below sure seems like goodbye.
My initial thought was that Edwards was leaving because Mac McClung was leaning toward returning, but after the latest McClung tweet I've updated my thought to, "I have no idea what's going on." It feels pretty good to let go and enjoy the ride. McClung will enter the transfer portal while preparing for the NBA draft.
Speaking of the transfer portal, Marcus Santos-Silva has officially withdrawn and will be back at Texas Tech next season.
With Santos-Silva out of the portal that leaves McClung, Edwards, Joel Ntambwe, and Micah Peavy in the portal. Nimari Burnett just left the portal on the other side to join Nate Oats in Alabama. But wait, there's more.
Jamarius Burton has been the subject of rumor leading all the way back to before the infamous April Fools day. He'd been rumored to be entering the portal but has not yet done it and has met with Mark Adams about staying at Texas Tech. We now know the result of that meeting and you can add another Red Raider to the Portal.
Joining the long list of big men that didn't fit the offense from Putnam Science Academy and transferring after not finding playing time is Vladislav Goldin.
Add to that Terrence Shannon Jr., who isn't in the portal but preparing for the NBA draft, that is your top three leading scorers not on the roster at the moment. With McClung, Edwards, and Shannon all leaving. Shannon could return, but I'm assuming the other two are gone for sure.
That leaves MSS and Kevin McCullar as the only returning starters along with Clarence Nadolny who played major minutes down the stretch. Tyreek Smith and Chibuzo Agbo have all the potential in the world and are also returning to Texas Tech. Avery Benson is also still on the roster.
If Benson is back on scholarship and nobody comes back onto the roster, that leaves seven open spots. MSS won't count against the limit of 13 scholarships. Adams said in his press conference Friday afternoon that he expected at least four additions so that seems to add up.
Currently, Texas Tech has two top targets in UNLV's Bryce Hamilton and Northern State's Parker Fox. Both Hamilton and Fox are hotly pursued but getting either one of them would be a great get for Adams and his staff.
Speaking of Adams staff, Barrett Peery and Adams are the only two with defined roles so far. Sean Sutton will be retained in some capacity, but that leaves several spots open including the strength and conditioning spot that was held by John Reilly for the past five seasons.
Here's the bottom line, this roster/staff/program isn't done changing. Chris Beard leaving was a really big deal and it's not all going to be fixed in two weeks. Adams has a ton of work to do and won't have the benefit of adding a single high school product to the roster. If the roster was completed before July I'd be really surprised. Mostly because Terrence Shannon can stay in the draft pool until late in July.
If you're looking for a firm date on when this roster and staff will be complete I'll say next August. It's a marathon, not a spring. Buckle up for a long ride.
LOOK: The Most Famous Actor Born Every Year