Big 12 Basketball: 10 biggest questions entering 2023-24 season

6.  Can Texas Tech get back on track and into the NCAA Tournament?

After a disastrous end to Mark Adams’ two-year tenure in Lubbock, former Arkansas State/North Texas head coach Grant McCasland now takes over at the helm with hopes of guiding the Red Raiders back to the NCAA Tournament.

Will he get the job done in year one? Yes, he will.

McCasland will deploy a defensive-minded, slow-tempo system that should help the Red Raiders form an identity quickly despite returning only 34.9 percent of their minutes, according to BartTorvik.

The Red Raiders have a strong backcourt in sophomore Pop Isaacs and Iowa/West Virginia transfer Joe Toussiant who can be able to push the pace if needed. Isaacs had a tremendous freshman campaign — tallying 11.5 PPG while earning All-Big 12 Freshman Team honors. Toussaint — despite only starting one game for Bob Huggins last year — thrived off the bench averaging 9.4 PPG and will be a steady presence at the guard spot both offensive and defensive for Grant McCasland.

Additionally, Texas Tech landed a pair of Arizona State transfers in 7’0 big man Warren Washington and Devan Cambridge — both of whom were starters on a 23-13 Sun Devil Squad that appeared in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

Another strong facet of the 2023-2024 Red Raiders is their depth. Despite a new coaching regime in place, McCasland retained key pieces in Kerwin Walton, Lamar Washington, Robert Jennings and KyeRon Lindsay.

The Red Raiders will not always play a pretty style of basketball, but there is more than enough in place to catapult Texas Tech back into the college basketball scene and into the 2024 NCAA Tournament.