Take Two: What should fans expect from Beard's 2018 class?

Discuss this story on the Inside the Double T forum | Commit List

Take Two returns with a weekly look at issues surrounding the Texas Tech athletics landscape.

Texas Tech's 2018 basketball recruiting class is, on paper, the best in program history. The Red Raiders signed two four-star prep stars in Khavon Moore and Kevin McCullar, a four-star JUCO standout in Deshawn Corprew, a Rivals150 three-star in Kyler Edwards and a late-qualifying three-star in Joshua Mballa. Add it all up, and Chris Beard's 2018 haul ranks 16th in the country and third in the Big 12.

How will those recruiting rankings translate into wins and losses? What should Texas Tech fans expect from these five prospects over the next three to four years?

"The class enters surrounded by heavy expectations, no doubt. While it might seem unrealistic based on Kansas' success over the last decade and a half, I think it would be a disappointment if this class didn't win a conference championship. Now, the Red Raiders will need to stack another class on top of this one this November - they could fill as many as five or six open scholarships - but Beard and his staff have assembled a bit of everything in this class - talent, length and skill. There are more good times ahead for this basketball program."

"In just two seasons on campus, Chris Beard has raised the standard for the Texas Tech basketball program. His 2017-18 team reached the Elite Eight and was a Keenan Evans foot injury away from winning the Big 12 regular season title. Given how heralded this class is, especially compared to the classes that made up Beard's first two Red Raider teams, it's hard to set the bar for the 2018 class any lower than a conference championship."