Texas Tech Basketball: Red Raiders grab point guard of the future in Kevin McCullar

Texas Tech Basketball was supposed to be done with the 2018-19 roster. But the Red Raiders pulled a rabbit out of their hat in getting Kevin McCullar.

Keenan Evans became a star in his senior season for Texas Tech, leading the team with 17.6 ppg and 3.2 apg and guiding the program to their first-ever Elite Eight appearance. His leadership and poised allowed the Red Raiders to navigate the difficult Big 12 and eventually the NCAA Tournament.

Replacing him was going to be tough but the team managed to grab Matt Mooney, a grad transfer who scored around 18 ppg this past season with South Dakota. When it comes to the program though, Mooney’s a stopgap at the point guard position since he only has one year of eligibility left.

The Red Raiders were still fine, having a whole year to find their future ball handler with a ton of options on the 2019 market. But apparently, they couldn’t wait, getting a talented player who’ll suit up for the team this upcoming season.

To some degree, this isn’t a huge surprise, as players reclassifying to come to college a year early is a popular thing to do. What’s somewhat rare in this case is what Kevin McCullar plans to do. Rather than join the team in the fall, he’ll come midway the season through around January. This isn’t unheard of, with the latest examples being Hamidou Diallo of Kentucky and Austin Wiley of Auburn.

This is a smart move for McCullar concerning his basketball future. By coming midway, he’ll have a head start when it comes to development, without any pressure to perform out the gate. If the perimeter depth is good and he’s not needing, the coaching staff can redshirt him the rest of the year and he’ll still have four whole years left in college. Otherwise, McCullar will be a pleasant midseason addition for the Red Raiders in case of injury of struggling play.

As for how the four-star guard fits, McCullar’s athleticism bodes well for him in the Big 12, who just had four of the best ball handlers in the country last year. He’s a quality scorer who can rebound from the guard position while displaying the kind of defense needed to play for Coach Chris Beard. Even if he doesn’t play next year, he’ll get a firm grasp of the system and his future teammates, which will only help McCullar when he finally gets on the court.

Next: Breaking down each Big 12 recruiting class for 2018

This newest commitment gives Texas Tech Basketball a top-20 recruiting class, joining Khavon Moore, Kyler Edwards, Deshawn Corprew and Josh Mballa. So despite losing a number of seniors, their leading scorer and top-20 NBA Draft pick in Zhaire Smith, Texas Tech appears to remain in the Big 12 picture for the foreseeable future.