Summer enrollees arrived on campus for Texas basketball and head coach Rodney Terry early this month. Texas welcomed eight new enrollees to the program, between transfer portal and high school recruiting for the 2024 signing class.
Texas basketball looks like a possible top 15 or 20 team as summer workouts begin
Terry's squad promises to look vastly different than it did last year. Texas essentially lost all five starters between players' exhausted eligibility and others leaving the program via the transfer portal during the spring window.
The two biggest losses, senior big man Dylan Disu and senior guard Max Abmas, were the primary pieces Terry and staff had to replace via the transfer portal this offseason.
Texas did a nice job adding quite a few immediate impact transfers to reshape the roster and bolster the starting five entering the inaugural season in the SEC in 2024-25. High school recruiting also should add at least one starting-caliber player next season.
We've already heard about some of the early returns from the new enrollees at the outset of summer workouts this week. Here's a look at four immediate impact summer enrollees for the Longhorns with summer S&C underway in Austin in the last few days.
Tre Johnson, SG
The crown jewel of Texas's 2024 signing class was the elite five-star Dallas (TX) Link Academy shooting guard Tre Johnson. Rated as the No. 5 recruit in the nation in the 2024 class in the 247Sports Composite, Johnson is a potential early lottery pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
That type of talent is something the Longhorns were lacking in the backcourt and on the wing for the last couple of seasons. The last time Texas had a lottery pick in the NBA Draft was big man Jaxson Hayes in 2019.
Terry has great expectations for Johnson entering his freshman campaign.
"Tre Johnson is a freshman who is physically ready come in and play with older players. I think, over the last 10 years in recruiting Texas high school basketball, Tre is a guy that's just a natural born scorer. But he's also a willing passer and wants to win at a high level."
Johnson is expected to contribute right away as one of Texas's top scoring threats. He's a natural scorer and gifted playmaker who can put the ball in the hope from different all three levels of the floor.
Texas didn't have the caliber of scorer with the natural talent Johnson possesses last season. Johnson also has the pieces around him to take some of the pressure off his shoulders and to have the necessary space to operate efficiently on offense with the ball in his hands.
It's not out of the question that Johnson can give the Longhorns 12-15 points per game while scoring the basketball at an efficient clip while getting to to the free-throw line frequently.
Jordan Pope, G
Former Oregon State Beavers sophomore transfer guard Jordan Pope was a big addition for Terry and the Longhorns in the portal this spring. It's not often that you find a 17 or 18 points per game scorer who led their team in scoring for multiple seasons while playing against major conference competition.
The 6-foot-2 and 165-pound guard from Oakley, CA, led Oregon State in scoring, assists, and free-throw percentage last season. He was the heart and soul of an Oregon State backcourt that had one of the best guard duos in the Pac-12 last season. Pope and senior shooting guard Dexter Akanno averaged nearly 30 points per game combined last year for the Beavs.
Pope can do a lot for Texas on the offensive end of the floor. He has the ability to lead the offense as the primary ball-handler and facilitator. Pope knows how to setup the offense in the settled half court and he can also handle the ball running out in transition.
As a natural shooter from range, Pope can threaten opposing defenses off-ball from beyond the arc. He could nail shots from three-point range, pulling up off-the-dribble or in catch-and-shoot situations. Pope was Oregon State's only player last season to average at least one assisted and unassisted three-point field goal per game (per CBB Analytics).
Pope played in a system at Oregon State that was one of the slowest tempos in college basketball last season (ranking 312th of 362 Division 1 teams). Summer workouts and preseason camp will be critical for Pope to get adjusted to his new role with Texas's backcourt and to the tempo Terry likes to play at in transition and on the offensive end.
Jayson Kent, F
Terry and staff turned to the Indiana State Sycamores program via the transfer portal to add a plethora of proven experience and complete-lineup depth this offseason.
Former Indiana State redshirt juniors Jayson Kent and Julian Larry chose to play out the final year of their collegiate eligibility for Terry and the Longhorns this coming season. Kent and Larry were integral parts of the best Indiana State team in the last two decades, winning a program-record 32 games and the MVC regular-season title last year.
Kent specifically has already received praise for the impact he can have on the program this year. On Texas Football's Gerry Hamilton reported on June 6 (premium content) that Kent has already been talked about as "an impressive pick up" for Texas from the transfer portal since he arrived on campus for the start of summer workouts earlier this week.
The super senior and grad transfer has reportedly looked great physically and has caught the attention of the staff and his teammates for his high basketball IQ and awareness on the court.
If you followed Kent's game last season, though, this shouldn't come as much of a surprise to you. Kent was an extremely smart off-ball player in a very specific role that former Indiana State head coach Josh Schertz wisely crafted for him last season.
Kent was a swiss-army knife for the Sycamores on the offensive end and a switchable on-ball defender capable of guarding any position between the two and the four. He was also a monster on the glass on both ends of the floor, leading the team in offensive and defensive rebounds last season.
Tramon Mark, G
Arguably the best pure scorer and shooter from range among Texas's five transfer pickups this offseason is former Arkansas Razorbacks and Houston Cougars senior shooting guard/wing Tramon Mark. The 6-foot-6 and 190-pound grad transfer from Dickinson, TX, led Arkansas in scoring last season.
"Tramon was one of the top players coming out of high school in the state of Texas and had a great run at Houston before going to Arkansas. So he's been around and knows what winning is about. We're excited about him."Rodney Terry on Mark's experience
Anytime you can add a proven scorer like Mark who ranked top 10 in the SEC in points per game the previous season, it seems like a great move for the team and coaching staff. Mark is also a player that Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson entrusted to play critical minutes in his backcourt and wing rotations on both ends of the floor for three seasons before transferring to Arkansas last season.
"Like Tre Johnson, you're talking about a guy who is 6-foot-6 playing on the perimeter with good range. Tramon can get downhill with his size, something we didn't have last year. He can create some separation for himself as well. Good passer, capable three-point shooter."Rodney Terry on Texas guards
It's crazy to think about the type of scoring potential the Longhorns have at the two and the three with the combination of Mark and Johnson. These two 6-foot-6 guards/wings can pick apart opposing defenses with their ability to score the basketball from all levels of the floor on offense.
Mark is another one of those immediate impact transfers that the Longhorns coaches have reportedly "spoken positively" of early in summer workouts. He seems to be handling the transition from Arkansas to Texas well, which isn't too shocking given he's back in his home state to play the final year of his collegiate eligibility and get back to the NCAA Tournament in 2025.