Texas Basketball: 3 transfers set to become stars for Longhorns in 2023-24

Max Abmas, G

Hands down, the most impactful portal addition for the Longhorns this offseason is the two-time Summit League Player of the Year and former Oral Roberts standout senior guard Max Abmas. The fifth-year senior guard will be an All-American candidate to watch for the Longhorns next season.

Abmas was definitely one of the best players in the transfer portal this offseason, which is a sentiment that Terry echoed in a recent interview he did with Bobby Burton and Gerry Hamilton from Inside Texas on July 19.

"“We were able to go in the portal and pull a guy like Max [Abmas], who has incredible experience and he’s a winner. And on top of that, he’s an incredible kid. He’s played in 123 games in his career, and has 2,500 points. He chose to come here, he’s a Texas kid. He wants to play on this stage every night, and he’s all about winning. At Texas, we have to be about winning.”"

The 6-foot-1 and 165-pound guard Abmas will do everything for Texas on the offensive end. He will facilitate the offense at a high level, create his own shots, get to the rim, and distribute the ball. Abmas is an efficient ball-handler and distributor that doesn’t make many mistakes leading to untimely turnovers.

Last season, Abmas posted a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio while averaging four assists per game and two turnovers. He also ranked in the top five in the Summit League in assists per game in each of the last three seasons.

Abmas also has a special ability to score the ball efficiently at an extremely high volume of touches. According to Sports Reference, Abmas is one of just two guards in college basketball to have scored at least 20 points per game while shooting at least 37 percent from the field and 85 percent from the charity stripe in the last three seasons.

The only downside for the Longhorns bringing in Abmas via the portal this offseason is on the defensive end. At best, Abmas will likely be a net neutral or slight net-positive in terms of his impact on Texas’ team defensive efficiency next season.

The rest of Abmas’ game has him bound for Big 12 stardom next season. With the elevated platform he’ll have playing for a major program in one of the best college hoops conferences in America, Abmas should be able to garner the attention necessary to finally get the All-American nod he deserved the last three seasons at Oral Roberts.