Texas basketball should immediately pursue ISU transfer G Tyrese Hunter

Among the biggest headlines to emerge via the NCAA Transfer Portal around the college hoops landscape is also something that would potentially be wise for head coach Chris Beard and the Texas basketball program to get in on too. Beard and his staff were very busy in the transfer portal last offseason. And that is likely to remain the case again in the weeks and months ahead. That should especially be the case with the most recent big-time transfer portal entrant around the Big 12 landscape.

Texas should at least kick the tires on the idea of pursuing the former standout freshman Iowa State Cyclones point guard and the reigning Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Tyrese Hunter. Beard and the Longhorns will need to bring in more depth to the backcourt unit this offseason with some of the potential looming departures in store this year. And Hunter could be a great way to get that done.

Before we dig into why it makes sense for Texas to pursue Hunter in the portal this spring, let’s take a brief look at the backcourt of this standout Iowa State guard.

Hunter announced via his Twitter timeline on the early afternoon of April 18 that he intends to at least test the waters in the transfer portal this offseason. A report from the Des Moines Register on April 18 notes that the rumor mill started picking up last weekend that Hunter could be entering the portal early this week.

And that came to be just after Noon on April 18.

The reasoning for Hunter leaving via the portal isn’t too clear at this point. But it looks like this could be an opportunity for the Longhorns to jump on what promises to be one of the very best and most potent portal players that emerge this offseason.

Texas basketball should seriously consider pursuing Iowa State transfer G Tyrese Hunter

Beard and his staff offered Hunter when he was a touted four-star recruit coming out of St. Catherines High School in Racine, WI, during the 2021 cycle. Hunter got an offer from Beard when he was still the head coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders a couple of years ago.

And despite Texas not offering Hunter out of high school, the connection he has with Beard and his staff from their days at Texas Tech should be more than enough to bridge the gap if they want to establish initial communication early this week.

Furthermore, what Hunter could bring to the table for the Longhorns is one of the most potent and talented young guards in the Big 12. Hunter is a versatile and skilled guard that stands out on both ends of the floor. He’s not the lengthiest guard at 6-foot and 180-pounds. But the size he does have he uses well on the perimeter.

Hunter flashed often last season as a quick and well-rounded guard that was a real force to be reckoned with on offense. He can pick apart defenses with his court vision or fast first step off the dribble. When he goes to his move off the dribble, he’s definitely got enough speed and he’s good enough with both hands to finish with either at the rim or kick it out to one of his teammates on the perimeter.

That would be a helpful skill set that was lacking at times for Texas last season.

There were times when senior guard Marcus Carr would seemingly get tunnel vision when handling the ball and miss open teammates or pass up on open shots when he was actually in rhythm.

Hunter is a fast decision-maker and is a more consistent facilitator/playmaker for the offense than Carr was for Texas last season.

And on the defensive end of the floor, Hunter continued to be a gritty and in-your-face perimeter guard that could hang with most of the better guards in the Big 12. He averaged around two steals per game and 0.5 blocks last season, along with a solid 3.7 defensive box plus/minus.

But what sticks out about Hunter’s defensive productivity from last season is the fact that he was so good throughout most of the Big 12 slate. He led the Cyclones in steals per game, defensive box plus/minus, and defensive win shares, in Big 12 play last season.

All in all, it’s easy to see why Hunter would be such a tremendous addition for the Longhorns out of the portal this offseason. If Texas does wind up losing the likes of Carr, redshirt senior shooting guard/wing Andrew Jones, senior shooting guard Avery Benson, redshirt senior sharpshooting guard Jase Febres, and senior guard Courtney Ramey, there will be a lot of roster spots to fill in the backcourt unit.

And the Longhorns would certainly get off to a great start in terms of rebuilding the backcourt rotation if they could get the likes of Hunter along with some of the incoming blue-chip commits such as four-star Rowan Brumbaugh and five-star Arterio Morris.

Texas finished up last season with a record of 22-12 (10-8 Big 12) following their Round of 32 loss last month to the Purdue Boilermakers. But Beard and the Longhorns managed to get their first NCAA Tournament win for the program since 2014 by knocking off the 11-seed Virginia Tech Hokies in the Round of 64.