Next week, head coach Rodney Terry and No. 19 Texas basketball open up the inaugural 2024-25 season in the SEC against the Ohio State Buckeyes at a neutral site in Las Vegas, NV. Texas enters this season with a roster capable of making a deep NCAA Tournament team and potentially an underrated contender for the SEC Championship.
Texas basketball could have two or three players selected from this current roster in the 2025 NBA Draft
Terry and the Longhorns have a roster chocked full of skilled and proven players in the core part of the rotation, especially at guard and wing. Texas also added a couple of talented players to the roster for the 2024-25 season from high school recruiting in the 2024 cycle last offseason.
Between Texas's new portal additions and high school recruiting in the 2024 class, it wouldn't surprise me to see NBA scouts paying close attention to the Longhorns' more important games this regular season.
Here are three top 2025 NBA Draft prospects for the Longhorns entering the 2024-25 regular season next week, opening up against Ohio State on Nov. 4.
Tramon Mark, SG
Among Texas's portal additions during the 2024 offseason, the one that probably has the best chance of being an NBA Draft pick late in the 2025 class is senior shooting guard Tramon Mark. The former Arkansas Razorbacks and Houston Cougars grad transfer guard is a lengthy and gifted playmaker, who has the chops and high basketball IQ to excel on both ends of the floor.
The 6-foot-6 and 185-pound guard from Dickinson, TX, Mark is expected to play a vital role at the two in Texas's starting five this season. Mark gives Terry and the Longhorns a proven high-rate scorer who can score the basketball from all three levels in the settled offensive halfcourt.
Mark's distance shooting has steadily improved throughout his collegiate career, but he still needs to be a more consistent three-point shooter off-ball to see his NBA Draft stock rise on the offensive end.
Defensively, Mark is a switchable guard who can matchup one-on-one with most players at the collegiate level between the one and the three. He's a good rebounder and has shown to be pretty disruptive as a perimeter defender.
ESPN ranks Mark as the 59th best player in college basketball entering the 2024-25 regular season.