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Texas Tech Basketball:Joel Ntambwe’s waiver denied, what that means for Red Raiders

By Matthew Conner

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - NOVEMBER 28: Joel Ntambwe #24 of the UNLV Rebels is fouled as he drives against Deion Lavender #2 of the Valparaiso Crusaders during their game at the Thomas & Mack Center on November 28, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Crusaders defeated the Rebels 72-64. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - NOVEMBER 28: Joel Ntambwe #24 of the UNLV Rebels is fouled as he drives against Deion Lavender #2 of the Valparaiso Crusaders during their game at the Thomas & Mack Center on November 28, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Crusaders defeated the Rebels 72-64. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
(Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /

Tech’s freshmen posts will have to be ready for important minutes

Though we didn’t see 7-foot freshman Russell Tchewa for more than two minutes on Thursday and 6-foot-7 freshman Tyreek Smith remains on the shelf with a broken foot, both are now likely to be essential role players this year.  After all, they are the only post players on the roster after Holyfield.

While both have tremendous up-sides, both are extremely raw as well.  We’ve seen Tchewa this year and his work has been encouraging.

He’s averaging 9.8 minutes of action per game during which he’s given Tech 2.8 points and 1.5 rebounds.  His agility and athleticism are a bit better than his scouting report suggested they might be when he came out of college but it is also apparent that he is still trying to figure out how to play in the motion offensive and no-middle defensive systems that Tech utilizes.

Still, when Tech takes on teams with plenty of size (Louisville, Texas, West Virginia, Kansas, Kentucky), the Red Raiders will likely need Tchwea to give them some important minutes off the bench and the number of minutes they will need from him only increases with Ntambwe no longer an option.

The same might be true of Smith.  Extremely athletic, he’s been compared to former Texas Tech forward Zach Smith and if he proves to be that type of player, his defense could be a huge plus this year.

It’s not that the former Texas A&M commit can’t score.  He averaged over 16 points per game for his club team.

But his game is built around his ability to get ugly points off of rebounds as well as to get to the rim off the dribble.  Those are traits that do not often lead freshmen to double-digits.

Still, his 12.3 rebounds and 3 blocks per game at the high school level during his senior year suggest that he can be an impact player in areas of the game in which this roster needs more help.  How his current broken foot will impact those abilities is unknown.  But should he be able to return to full strength this year, there’s possibly a role for the 3-star 2019 signee.

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