Over the last year and change, Texas men's basketball coach Sean Miller has rebuilt the Longhorns into a team to be taken seriously, and he did that through a lot of incredible work on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal.
However, in contrast to the "recruiting success" of a lot of other powerhouse programs in the past year or so, Miller didn't tap into players in the NBA G-League, who still supposedly had eligibility remaining.
On the recruiting trail, Miller and the Horns focused on players coming out of high school, and they spent the rest of their time on players in the transfer portal. There were never reports of Texas going after former college players who had already left for the league.
"We really tried to go high school and players through the portal from one school to the next," Miller said recently on his recruiting efforts. "I think it's unfair to recruit if a player won't be eligible."
Longhorns knew G-League wasn't viable recruiting option
According to Miller, his athletic department's compliance team discouraged him from going after players with G-League experience, or even experience at the professional level overseas.
Now, with the cluster that has been created by G-League players working to return to college, the Longhorns have sailed through the mess unscathed, having absolutely zero questions as to whether their players would be eligible to actually play or not.
Of course, there are schools that have successfully pulled off recruiting a former NBA G-League player, cleared his eligibility, and seen him play in games, like the Alabama Crimson Tide with Charles Bediako.
However, the Horns haven't had to deal with the headache and off-court distractions that come with the recruiting process, and instead, have been able to throw all of their weight behind recruiting blue-chip high school prospects and top-tier transfers.
Texas basketball recruiting class of 2026
- Austin Goosby, five-star small forward
- Bo Ogden, four-star shooting guard
- Joe Sterling, four-star combo guard
- Coleman Elkins, three-star center
- Mantas Laurencikas, point guard
The Horns' class of 2026 recruits ranks 16th in the nation and fifth in the SEC, bringing in a ton of in-state talent who are fully bought into the program.
Texas basketball transfer class of 2026
- Mikey Lewis, four-star combo guard from Saint Mary's
- Elyjah Freeman, four-star small forward from Auburn
- Amari Evans, four-star shooting guard from Tennessee
- David Punch, four-star power forward from TCU
- Isaiah Johnson, four-star point guard from Colorado
Miller also brought in an elite group of transfer portal prospects, stealing a pair from fellow SEC programs, and bringing in the experience that Texas will need to take the next step this season.
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