NCAA Basketball: Ranking of top 25 team backcourts for 2023-24 season

5. Houston Cougars

In the program’s rise into being a national juggernaut, Coach Sampson has always had some elite guard play. That included last season, having last season’s leading scorer and AAC Player of the Year, Marcus Sasser (16.8 ppg). He’s gone, along with Tramon Mark, who is now at Arkansas.

Houston managed to bring back starting point guard Jamal Shead, one of the top passers in the AAC. He averaged 10.5 ppg and 5.4 apg, including a 25-point effort against Wichita State and four different games with at least 10 assists. Joining him in the backcourt are two of the top transfers, starting with LJ Cryer. He averaged 15.0 ppg at Baylor and shot 42% from three-point range.

Another big name is Damian Dunn, a 6’5 guard from Temple. He’s dealt with injuries throughout his career but when on the court, Dunn can be a prolific scorer. He averaged 15.3 ppg, including a 38-point game against Vanderbilt in overtime. He and Cryer aren’t known for being elite individual defenders so how they fit in the defensive scheme at Houston will be key to watch.

There’s also plenty of depth on the roster as well. Emanuel Sharp and Terrance Arceneaux are two former top-50 prospects that have shown signs of being impact pieces, though they’ll now have to show it at the Big 12 level, a big jump from the AAC. Freshman Kordelius and veteran Mylik Wilson are two other potential rotation pieces to watch as well. We’ll see if this new “Big 3” can be as impactful as last year’s group.