This 2016-17 Texas Tech basketball team is just over 90 days away from tipping off the season, one that Red Raider fans are certainly anticipating, as athletic director Kirby Hocutt announced on Sunday that more season tickets have already been sold for the upcoming season than were for the entire 2015-16 year.
Now, those fans will eagerly wait, wondering just what this revamped roster will do this season. One returning player that certainly seemed to have earned his stripes in Chris Beard's eyes is senior forward Matt Temple, who earned a scholarship earlier on this summer.
The head coach loves the story behind how Tubby Smith's staff found the center, and he felt the walk-on had definitely earned his keep, both on the court and with his teammates.
“Matt Temple is a special guy. Great story. When I heard the story, I think Joe Esposito told me about a good player at the rec center and went over there. I immediately told everybody on our staff that, hey, we’re going over to the rec center,” said Beard with a smile. “But, I didn’t give Matt Temple a scholarship. Matt Temple earned it. He earned by his play on the court last year, his approach from the day we got the job until the present.”
“Another cool thing about that story is that I had two or three of his teammates come into the office in one-on-one settings and basically go to bat for Matt,” he said. “That was pretty cool. That was really rewarding to know that Matt has the respect of his teammates.”
One of those teammates is junior guard Keenan Evans, the returning starting point guard for this 2016-17 squad. Beard watched him play in high school and was excited to finally get a chance to coach him after playing against him last year.
“I love Keenan Evans. I watched him play a lot on the summer circuit in AAU. Obviously, I followed Texas Tech’s team as a fan last year and watched some games, and we played them I think it was the tenth game of the year at Little Rock, and I was able to study those games. Keenan has a bright future in basketball. I think he’s a guy that can play after college. He’s legit six-three, has great size, intelligence,” he said. “It’s a privilege to coach Keenan, and we think he’s gonna be a big part of the future here.”
Evans certainly has more competition at point guard going into the season as well, with players such as Gio McLean transferring in to push him. Beard noted that the junior was all on board with the decision to add players that would nip at his heals, and he believes the point guard will be all the better for it.
“Keenan wanted that. Keenan embraced that. ‘Coach, we need help. We need competition,’ so I look for Keenan to be an even better player now that we have a little more competition on the roster in his position.”
Two more guards in the stable are JUCO All-American transfers Niem Stevenson and Shadell Millinghaus. The worry with junior college players is always about how long it will take them to adjust to big time college basketball, but Beard's hope for both stems from being coached by great coaches and having teammates at Tech that invite them in and make them a part of the group early on.
“The adjustment from junior college is always an interesting question, because the Big 12 is a different level,” he said. “Millinghaus and Stevenson, they both played for really good coaches in disciplined programs, so we hope that allows the transition to be a little quicker for those guys to transition to this stage. Also, the current players play such a role in embracing these guys and getting them ready to play at this level. As coaches we can only do so much. Championship teams have internal leadership where for every one thing a coach says, three or four things are said by other players. That’s why it’s exciting to think about what this team could be.”
Another newcomer that will seemingly be held to some lofty expectations is Arkansas State transfer and senior forward Anthony Livingston. Beard believes he'll be a key player in the front court from day one, and that's a product of both his talent and mental makeup.
"Basketball-wise, he’s a special talent. I got a firsthand seat at it. At Little Rock, we played against him. He’s a great combination of skill and size. He’s a guy, in my opinion, that will play basketball after college. I think he could be one of the impact players in the Big 12. Separate from his basketball, his leadership, his demeanor, his maturity, he’s a great teammate. I’ve already got two or three just letters and emails from people in the community that have run into Anthony in different settings complimenting what kind of young man he is, so those things are related. There’s a relationship between character and winning on the court. So, we’re proud to have Anthony in our program, and I think Red Raider fans are gonna love watching him play this year.”
And while players like Livingston and Stevenson are expected to be key offensive scorers for this Texas Tech team, moving to the motion offense might also give a few returners a chance to shine like never before. Some players are better fits in different systems, and Beard believes a handful of the core group from a year ago could really benefit from the change.
“I hope so, and that’s a great question. That’s not a negative on the last style of play. Coach Smith is a hall of famer, and they made the NCAA tournament, but there’s different ways to play basketball, and different ways fit different people’s skillsets. Back to Aaron Ross, here’s a guy that can really shoot. In my motion, we have a lot of opportunities to shoot. I think Keenan’s a great driver. Justin Gray, Zach, a lot of these guys, and I think with the motion there will be more space than maybe we’ve had in the past, but we hope so. We think the style of play could really benefit some of these players.”
