Basketball

24/7 Sports’ Isaac Trotter has projections for the all-conference Big 12 team and the team will likely be led by Baylor guard Adam Flagler, with Kansas guard Jalen Wilson, TCU guard Mike Miles, Jr., Texas forward Timmy Allen, and Texas Tech forward Kevin Obanor:

Obanor was awesome in his first year at Texas Tech despite flying below the radar behind Bryson Williams, Terrence Shannon Jr., Kevin McCullar and Mark Adams’ defense. Everything is set up for Obanor to be an absolute stud for Texas Tech in 2022-23. He just has very few flaws. Obanor rated in the 87th percentile in overall offense last year, per Synergy. In fact, Obanor shot better with a hand in his face (38%) compared to when he was wide open (25%). His percentages on unguarded catch-and-shoot jumpers should skyrocket next year. Obanor’s profile is screaming for some positive regression. Oh, and he was in the 81st percentile on defense, holding opponents to just 32% shooting when he was the closest defender on jump shots. Obanor is a real two-way menace who shouldn’t fly under the radar anymore.

In the also considering portion is Texas Tech center Fardaws Aimaq:

Aimaq is one of the highest-rated transfers who is coming to the Big 12. Aimaq put up enormous numbers at Utah Valley. The stats might take a dip, but Aimaq will be very impactful on if Texas Tech has a good season or a great one. The Big 12 will be a big test or Aimaq, but his defense should translate. Opponents shot just 30.5% on jump shots when Aimaq was the closest defender, per Synergy. Adding him to Mark Adams’ superior defense scheme should be a match made in heaven, as long as he can improve in pick-and-roll coverage. There’s a world where Aimaq is a double-double machine and the most important player for Texas Tech in 2022-23.

Football

Athlon Sports has the anonymous coaches talk about the Big 12 teams. I had actually see the magazine in the store one day, snapped a photo of Texas Tech’s commentary and then posted it onto the STP Slack channel where it was not roundly received (I think Kyle may have posted on Gambling Gauchos as well). In any event, I think this is a bunch of horseshit and simply don’t understand some of the comments:

“You aren’t going to find a lot of coaches who liked the way the administration went about their business. They bailed on [Matt] Wells early, in-season, and fired him with a winning record. The schedule was back-loaded, but still, he was doing about what was expected of him at that point. And we know they made that change specifically to bring Joey [McGuire] over from Baylor. So how much patience are they going to have with a guy they hand-picked for a program that was already winning? It will come down to QB play for them. [Tyler] Shough can play really well; that broken collarbone came at a really bad time. How will he pair with [offensive coordinator Zach] Kittley? They’re going to throw it a lot. It’s going to be closer to the Kliff Kingsbury stuff there. The skill is there at wide receiver. That’s probably one of the most consistent position groups in the league. They always look like a basketball team out there. Defensively, they ran a 3-3 stack last year; I think Tim [DeRuyter] will keep it somewhat similar at first.”

“I think the hires have a lot more to do with the networking sides and how they can get a better hold on recruiting. That could really help their defense in the long run.”

“How much are they expecting in that first season? Is seven wins a disappointment? It’s going to be really interesting.”

This seems to be a person who has no pulse on Texas Tech or the administration. I do recommend reading all of these, even if I disagree with the segment on Texas Tech.

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal’s Don Williams has the season tickets sold, which sits at 27,000+, which is up from last year (21,661), more than 2020 (3,560), and 2019 (24,460). The 27,000 figure is pretty good and is within spitting distance of 2018 (27,987) and 2017 (29,710).