#7: TCU Horned Frogs
The Horned Frogs enjoyed another quality season under head coach Jamie Dixon, earning a 6-seed and taking Gonzaga to the wire in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. To build upon that finish, TCU will need to account for the loss of Mike Miles, Jr., the team’s best player, who declared for the NBA draft a week ago.
Miles missed some time this past season with a knee injury, and the Horned Frogs were a completely different team without him, as they lost four consecutive games at one point. So how will they fill this void?
TCU has been one of the early winners of the transfer portal, as they recently got a commitment from Jameer Nelson, Jr. of Delaware. The son of the former St. Joe’s great fits in much the same scoring guard mold that Miles did, as he averaged 20.6 points per game for the Blue Hens. Four-star freshman shooting guard Jace Posey is another new face that will provide additional backcourt support.
The addition of Nelson is huge for TCU, but to remain among the other Big 12 contenders, the school could really use the return of Damion Baugh for his Covid year. The senior more than doubled the assist total of anyone else on the team last year, and his playmaking ability will be key in a conference stacked with so many good defensive teams. The school will also need a replacement for center Eddie Lampkin, Jr., who missed the end of the season and has already entered the transfer portal.
The past two seasons have been the best of Jamie Dixon’s seven-year tenure at his alma mater, but to continue that upward trend, the team will need Nelson to show he’s capable of filling Miles’ shoes.