Texas Tech basketball offers 5-Star 2020 guard Bryce Thompson

This week, the Texas Tech basketball program extended an off to Bryce Thompson, a 5-star guard in the class of 2020.

With the success of Chris Beard and the Texas Tech basketball program, fans have begun to follow the Red Raiders’ efforts on the recruiting trail with more fervor than ever before.  That’s due in large part to the fact that Beard is recruiting many of the top players in the nation, something that Tech basketball fans are still not fully accustomed to.

Another elite prospect on the Red Raider’s radar is Bryce Thompson, who picked up an offer from Tech this week according to Corey Evans of Rivals.com.  Rated a 5-star guard by virtually every college basketball scouting service in existence, the 6-foot-5, 175-pounder is rated the No. 20 player in the nation and the No. 4 combo guard in the class of 2020 by 247Sports.

The Tulsa, Oklahoma prospect holds offers from at least 20 Power 5 schools including Kansas, Texas, North Carolina, Arkansas, Michigan State, Tennessee, and of course, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.   247’s crystal ball predictions give the early edge to Oklahoma, with Kansas and Oklahoma State also considered strong contenders to land the top player in Oklahoma.

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Named the Gatorade Oklahoma Player of the Year as a junior, Thompson averaged 19.6 points, 5.2 assists, 5 rebounds, and 1 steal per game in leading his team to a 6-A state title.  He also maintained a 3.29 GPA in the classroom.

According to 247Sports’ Josh Gershon, Thompson’s game sounds perfect for Chris Beard’s system on both ends of the court.   Gershon offers the following scouting report on Thompson’s 247Sports profile page.

"“Combo guard with good size and decent length. Big-time scorer who can knock down shots from all three levels. Very crafty with ball in his hands and uses handle and footwork to create his own shot. Difficult shot maker with fadeaways and runners in his arsenal. Not just a scorer; has tremendous vision and can facilitate for teammates. Given his vision and scoring ability, can play on and off ball. Has size and feel to defend multiple positions. Trajectory has been extremely impressive. If continues to improve at same rate he is well on NBA path.”"

It certainly appears that Thompson could be a one-and-done player.  Having already participated in the NBA Players Association’s top-100 camp, he has also been invited to the USA Basketball Junior Team training camp with the top high school players in the nation.

https://twitter.com/B3thompson__/status/1146981635251998720?s=20

Thompson also appears to have the type of work ethic that we have seen make recent Red Raider first-round draft picks Zhaire Smith and Jarrett Culver successful.  According to the Tulsa World, Thompson began a daily ritual of 5 a.m. workouts when he was in the 5th grade.

In that same article, author Bill Haisten points out that Thompson’s father Rod, has some connections to a couple of the top programs in the nation.  While playing college basketball for Tulsa in the late 90s, the elder Thompson played for Kansas head coach Bill Self (a Tulsa assistant at the time) and current North Carolina assistant Steve Robinson, who was Thompson’s head coach with the Golden Hurricane.

That will not stop Beard from trying to land this top prospect though.   He’s already had more success on the recruiting trail than any coach in Texas Tech basketball history and as he continues to target some of the top players in the nation, it is clear that he is far from satisfied.