Texas Basketball: 3 potential Courtney Ramey transfer landing spots

With the NCAA Transfer Portal set to play a huge role in how this coming offseason shapes up for head coach Chris Beard and the Texas basketball program, it’s worth taking a look at the early movement on the open market in the last couple of weeks. As far as Texas is concerned, the biggest storyline concerning the transfer portal very early on this offseason involves the former four-star recruit and senior guard Courtney Ramey.

Last week, Ramey announced his intentions to test the waters in the 2022 NBA Draft class and otherwise enter the transfer portal. That likely signals the end of his run with the Longhorns after four years.

Moreover, Ramey was one of the few returning players for the Longhorns last season after Beard replaced the former Texas head coach Shaka Smart. He played a key role for the Longhorns’ backcourt unit last season, playing in just over 30 minutes per game and starting in 32 of the 34 games he played in.

Where could former Texas basketball G Courtney Ramey land next out of the portal this offseason?

Texas is going to have big shoes to fill in the backcourt unit this offseason following the loss of Ramey. But it’s also something that Beard and his staff were likely already at least preparing for the possibility of happening this offseason.

Yet, this move for Ramey also likely signals one final push for him to make his worth known to NBA scouts. He’s not really projected to be picked in the first or second round of the 2022 NBA Draft. So, he’s likely looking to use his last year of NCAA eligibility to really boost his draft stock and make a deeper postseason push at his next stop out of the portal.

With that in mind, here’s a look into three potential landing spots for Ramey out of the transfer portal this offseason.

Illinois

It seems like one of the early programs to watch that is making a big push to land Ramey’s services out of the transfer portal early this offseason are the Ilinois Fighting Illini. Illinois is a potential landing spot for Ramey out of the transfer portal that makes sense at first glance, but there are still a few other factors to consider.

Head coach Brad Underwood and the Fighting Illini will be looking to respond next season after an early exit once again in the NCAA Tournament. Illinois fell short in the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament at the hands of the five-seed Houston Cougars and head coach Kelvin Sampson.

Moreover, Underwood and the Fighting Illini will need to get to work right away this offseason to try and build out this roster to compete for a Big Ten title again next season. Illinois has some backcourt depth to replenish this offseason after the loss of point guard Andre Curbelo to the transfer portal and especially the senior duo of Trent Frazier and Alfonso Plummer.

Ramey could bring some experienced guard depth for the Fighting Illini right away. He’s a proven iso scorer and has consistently become a more efficient shooter from deep in his four years on the Forty Acres.

As a team that takes a lot of three-pointers (ranking in the top 60 in Division I in terms of three-point attempts per game last season), the Fighting Illini could also get a good fit offensively by adding Ramey to the mix next season. His solid on-ball defensive skills could also help make an impact on that end of the floor for a team that ranked in the bottom five in the Big Ten in terms of steals per game (5.0) last season.

Alabama

An under-the-radar hoops program to watch that could find a good fit out of the transfer portal early this offseason in Ramey is the Alabama Crimson Tide.

With the possibility of head coach Nate Oaks and the Crimson Tide losing two of their most productive guards from last season’s roster, pursuing an experienced potential replacement to restore some depth with this unit such as Ramey makes a lot of sense.

Alabama could be set to lose the productive guard duo of freshman JD Davison and senior Keon Ellis this offseason.

But I would say that there is a greater possibility that the Crimson Tide lose the former JUCO transfer Ellis than a potential early entrant in the 2022 NBA Draft class in Davison. Both Ellis and Davison are significant risks for the Crimson Tide in terms of backcourt depth losses this offseason, though.

What Ramey could bring to the table for the Crimson Tide is a much-needed stabilizing defensive presence and another bucket-getter that can spark the team offensively. Alabama ranked in the bottom 100 teams in Division I last season in terms of defensive rating (104.0). They also ranked in the bottom 50 teams in the country in terms of team three-point shooting percentage (just shy of 31 percent).

Ramey can really help Alabama in both areas, as well as replacing some of the potential depth lost from the backcourt unit this offseason.

Kansas State

The Kansas State Wildcats and new head coach Jerome Tang should be considered a real threat to land a commitment out of the transfer portal early this offseason from Ramey. And that might be the worst-case scenario of the three potential landing spots on this list in terms of where Ramey could take his talents next.

An inter-conference transfer for Ramey would mean an experienced and potent two-way guard helps to build up a Big 12 foe immediately that was already a difficult out for the Longhorns last season.

But it makes a lot of sense as to why the Wildcats are interested in pursuing Ramey out of the transfer portal this offseason. And the same could be said for any potential interest Ramey has in the Wildcats.

Kansas State hired away former assistant coach and recruiting ace Ulric Maligi from the Texas staff a few weeks ago. Maligi joining Tang’s coaching staff gives Kansas State a more meaningful connection with Ramey.

And Ramey is a St. Louis, MO, native, thus transferring to Kansas State would get him a lot closer to home.

All in all, Kansas State will likely be looking to build their roster from the ground up this offseason. That is similar to what Beard had to do with the Longhorns roster last offseason in his first year at the helm as the head coach.

Ramey could be a valuable piece to helping Tang and his staff build out this roster in Manhattan in his first year at the helm.