Texas basketball in top 6 for Iowa State transfer G Tyrese Hunter

There was some good news that arrived for head coach Chris Beard and the Texas basketball program on April 25. As Texas is scanning the NCAA Transfer Portal to upgrade their roster ahead of next season, Beard and his staff have seemingly made a lot of headway in terms of building out the backcourt unit.

Beard and the Longhorns could further bolster the backcourt unit if they were able to nab a commitment out of the transfer portal from what is likely to be one of the best guards that will emerge on the transfer market throughout the entirety of this offseason. One recent big-time guard target in the transfer portal is the subject of a good portion of the headlines around the college hoops landscape on this day.

Texas targeted the former Iowa State Cyclones standout freshman guard and the reigning Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Tyrese Hunter out of the transfer portal almost immediately after he surfaced in the mix last week. And it looks like some of the moves that Texas made recently paid off in his latest round of finalist school cuts.

Hunter announced his top six finalist schools on his Twitter timeline on the afternoon of April 25, much to the delight of Texas fans.

And the other five schools that made it through this round of finalist cuts for Hunter are the Kansas Jayhawks, Tennessee Volunteers, Louisville Cardinals, Gonzaga Bulldogs, and Purdue Boilermakers.

Texas and Kansas are the two schools in the mix that could keep Hunter in the Big 12 once he finds his next landing spot out of the portal this offseason.

Texas basketball cracks the top six for Iowa State transfer G Tyrese Hunter

Landing a commitment out of the portal from Hunter would obviously be massive for the Longhorns. And Texas could use the addition to the backcourt unit after missing out on the former SMU Mustangs transfer guard Kendric Davis to the Memphis Tigers last week.

Texas could have quite the potent backcourt unit next season with Hunter in the mix. That could feature a group that includes the returning super senior guard Marcus Carr, former New Mexico State Aggies transfer shooting guard Jabari Rice, and incoming freshmen such as five-star point guard Arterio Morris and four-star point guard Rowan Brumbaugh.

Moreover, Hunter was a sensational first-year guard for the Cyclones last season. On his quest to winning the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and getting Big 12 All-Freshman honors last season, he averaged around 11 points per game, four rebounds, five assists, two steals, and 0.5 blocks while shooting 39 percent from the field, 27 percent from beyond the arc, and 69 percent from the free-throw line.

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