Texas Basketball: Transfer portal work complete after getting Marcus Carr

In a day that is very difficult to keep up with the news cycle for new head coach Chris Beard and the Texas basketball program, the commitments are pouring in. Somehow and someway, Beard managed to work more magic in the NCAA Transfer Portal for the Texas men’s hoops program to land a commitment from the former Minnesota Golden Gophers and Pitt Panthers standout point guard Marcus Carr on July 17.

Carr is the latest of multiple key additions out of the transfer portal for Beard and the Longhorns so far this offseason. Texas is now well over five transfer portal additions, and it feels like the rotation is essentially complete at this point in time.

Outside of maybe getting a commitment out of the portal from someone that could be a backup center of sorts for Beard and the Longhorns next season, there’s not much more room in this rotation. Texas definitely now has the starting unit rounded out too.

It was hard to emphasize at the time when Texas got a commitment out of the transfer portal from the former UMass Minutemen star sophomore center Tre Mitchell was. Describing what the additions of both Mitchell and Carr will do for Beard and the Longhorns next season is even harder to do.

Carr was previously noted as a potential perfect final transfer portal addition of the offseason for Beard and the Longhorns. But that list was made on Hook’em Headlines with the idea in mind that most weren’t likely to happen, but they were at least good ideas to work off of.

Getting one of those players as a potential final transfer addition of the offseason is huge for Texas.

Carr was set to visit Texas this week, and he was getting interest from some other top college hoops programs such as the Louisville Cardinals, Kentucky Wildcats, and Kansas Jayhawks. Yet, it didn’t take long at all for Beard and the Longhorns to seal the deal with Carr following this week’s visit.

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It was Carr taking to his Instagram page on July 17 to announce his commitment to Texas that made this move official. Carr is likely to be the starting point guard for the Longhorns right away next season. Texas was likely either to work with senior guard Courtney Ramey or the former Kentucky Wildcats freshman guard Devin Askew if not for landing a commitment from Carr.

Landing Marcus Carr helps to round out the starting unit for Texas basketball

But now, Texas has a lot more freedom for how Beard can tool together his starting unit at the outset of next season. Carr should be the starting point guard, and Ramey could be a combo guard that starts at the two.

What we really don’t know now is who will start for Beard and the Longhorns at the three and four. Those will be some hotly contested spots in a talent-packed starting unit early in the 2021-22 campaign.

Moreover, what Carr brings to the table for the Longhorns in particular is a two-way guard that just got out of the 2021 NBA Draft scouting process. He returned to the transfer portal after going through the draft scouting process for a few months this offseason.

Carr is a very capable point guard that is an excellent scorer off-the-dribble, a good facilitator, rebounder, and solid one-on-one perimeter defender. Last season, Carr averaged a career-best 19.4 points per game, 4.0 rebounds, 4.9 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.1 blocks. And he shot 38.5 percent from the field, 31.7 percent from beyond the arc, and 79.9 percent from the free-throw line.

An absolute workhorse for the Golden Gophers in the past two seasons, he led the Big Ten in total minutes played one year and led the conference in minutes played per game for the past two. He also ranked in the top three in points per game in the Big Ten last season.

Carr had his most decorated campaign last season. He received All-Big Ten Third-Team honors and was on the Wooden Award Watch List in the preseason, early season, and midseason.

Watch out for Carr to be a threat to get All-Big 12 honors next season, especially if he logs heavy minutes for Beard and the Longhorns.

Texas will now head into next season with a roster capable of earning a top five or top 10 spot in the preseason polls. This is just too talented of a team not to have the expectations to at least make it to the Elite Eight come the next round of March Madness.