Texas Basketball: 3 new additions the Longhorns should be excited about

Devin Askew, G

One of my personal favorite additions out of the transfer portal ever for the Longhorns, even among those that former head coaches Shaka Smart and Rick Barnes grabbed off the open market in past years, is the former Kentucky Wildcats freshman guard Devin Askew. Texas got what could amount to a steal out of the transfer portal in the former elite five-star recruit Askew.

Among those freshmen that had such a difficult time transitioning their skill set to the college level last season, a lot of them could be recognized with head coach John Calipari at Kentucky. Askew did get better near the end of last season, but his counting stats and shooting percentages as a whole left a lot to be desired.

In 25 games played with the Wildcats last season, Askew averaged 6.5 points per game, 2.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.3 blocks. And he shot 34.5 percent from the field, 27.8 percent from beyond the arc, and 80.6 percent from the free-throw line.

It is clear at this point that Askew has to improve both his shot selection and overall shooting efficiency. Shooting well below 30 percent from three-point land and under 35 percent from the field will be unacceptable moving forward for Askew. He’s a better shooter than that, and his numbers should prove that in the near future.

The defensive skill set of Askew is severely underrated, as his 2.1 defensive box plus/minus rating from last season proves. What also became clear last season was that Askew’s scoring was key for Kentucky in wins. When Askew scored at least nine points and also registered at least three assists, and two steals (putting his defensive skills on display), the Wildcats had a record of 4-0. Kentucky only won nine games altogether last season so that is big.