Texas Tech big-man Russel Tchewa has entered the transfer portal. Tchewa averaged 1.7 points, 0.9 rebounds, and 0.3 blocks a game and averaged about 5 minutes a game. Tchewa was a fan-favorite, a huge raw freshman (7-0/260) who has a ton of potential and athleticism.

For head coach Chris Beard, I think this is maybe a situation where Beard is looking to win now and with the addition of Joel Ntambwe and Esahi Nyiwe these are non-traditional big-men in that they can draw opposing big-men away from the basket and are rim runners. Of course, Tchewa has a lot of those qualities as well, but he’s got a more traditional type of center body and offensively, he’s going to be in and around the blocks and that’s about it (yes, I know he’s got a decent mid-range shot, but I think Beard is looking to stretch the floor more than that).

And if you’ll look at the eligibility chart, with Tchewa leaving that still means that at least one other player will need to transfer to make room for all of the new players. This chart also assumes that Avery Benson will still be on the team, but perhaps not on scholarship.

Eligibility Chart

13 scholarships each year | Black Box = Scholarship Year | Red Box = Redshirt Year | HS = Playing high school | JC = Playing junior college | TR = Transfer | NBA = Declared for NBA Draft | NA = No Longer Attending | *Transfer from UNLV | **Transfer from Wichita State | Enters transfer portal