NCAA Basketball: Way-too-early ranking of 2022 Maui Invitational field

LAHAINA, HI - NOVEMBER 27: A Maui Invitational basketball on the floor during a third round Maui Invitation basketball game between the Virginia Tech Hokies and the Brigham Young Cougars at the Lahaina Civic Center on November 27, 2019 in Lahaina, Hawaii. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

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Kevin Obanor Texas Tech Red Raiders (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /

4. Texas Tech Red Raiders

The transfer portal giveth and taketh away. That’s particularly true for the Texas Tech Red Raiders, who lost several talented players but still look like a second-weekend NCAA Tournament team.

A majority of the program’s starters this season might be transfers, two coming from major programs elsewhere. Oregon transplant De’Vion Harmon and UNC transfer Kerwin Walton are likely to earn the starting guard spots, with the former a proven player and the latter a strong shooter.

The frontcourt could be one of the best in the country. Kevin Obanor averaged 10 points per game last season and has a permanent green light from the perimeter, creating matchup nightmares for opponents. Fardaws Aimaq comes over from Utah Valley after averaging 18.9 points and 13.6 rebounds per game last year.

The thing working against Texas Tech is a lot of continuity. Most of the contributors for the coming season were not with the team last year. In addition to those already mentioned, Gardner-Webb transfer D’Maurian Williams and five-star freshman Elijah Fisher come to mind.

There’s a good chance Texas Tech will turn out to be pretty good this season, maybe even in the upper echelon of the Big 12 once again. It might take some time for the Red Raiders to get to that point, though.

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