Kyler Edwards will be even more important than we assumed
Tech fans have been excited about the prospect of what guard Kyler Edwards will become in his sophomore year. That’s because, down the stretch of his freshman year, he showed some signs that the game was starting to slow down and he was starting to find his place.
Now, he will be thrust into a greater role not only on the court but also in the locker room. As hard as it may be to believe, Edwards is now the second-most grizzled Big 12 veteran on the roster behind Moretti.
While grad transfers Chris Clarke and T.J. Holyfield have been through their share of college basketball wars, they have not been in live action with Beard. When the season starts, only Moretti and Edwards will have any experience of being in pressure-filled situations with their current coaching staff which could lead to some early-season growing pains.
Corprew’s departure also almost certainly guarantees that Edwards will be a starter this year. Assuming he starts in game-one, it will be his first start as a Red Raider after he was a key reserve off the bench last season.
Had Corprew remained on the team, Beard would have had to decide if he wanted to insert Corprew’s physicality or Edwards’ scoring into his starting five. It was easy to imagine him bringing Edwards off the bench to be an offensive catalyst to help balance out Tech’s scoring and to be a leader of the second unit.
Either way, Beard would likely have had one of the two come off the bench to be a steady influence for a group of reserves that will be frighteningly green. Now, there’s no such comfort for this year’s team which means that Edwards will probably spend plenty of time on the court with the young reserves.
Last year, he scored 5.5 points per game but averaged 8.6 in the final three games of the NCAA Tournament. Tech will need him to take a huge step forward as both a player and a leader this season as he is already one of the roster’s most experienced players.