Texas Tech basketball: Jahmi’us Ramsey reportedly headed to NBA

It is being reported that the Texas Tech basketball team’s leading scorer from last year, Jahmi’us Ramsey, is set to head to the NBA.

It looks like the Texas Tech basketball program is headed towards a third straight year in which an underclassman leaves the program for the NBA.  That’s because Jahmi’us Ramsey is expected to declare his intention to leave Lubbock after just one season and follow in the footsteps of Zhaire Smith (2018) and Jarrett Culver (2019) who each went to the NBA as underclassmen in the last two offseasons.

Ramsey must make his intention known by Sunday’s deadline for draft entrants and now it appears that his mind is made up.  Friday, college basketball reporter Jeff Goodman Tweeted that the Red Raiders’ leading scorer from 2019-20 is expected to announce this weekend his plans to turn pro.

But unlike the easy decisions for Smith and Culver when it came to leaving school, Ramsey’s decision was likely much more difficult.  He’s seen as just a late first-round pick meaning that he could easily slide into the second round which is important because his rookie contract would not be guaranteed as are the deals signed by first-round picks.

It is important to keep in mind that players can withdraw their names from draft consideration up until June 15 meaning that Ramsey could return to the South Plains if he finds that his stock is not where he would like.  In a normal offseason, that rule would allow all players to participate in the scouting combine and work out for teams to get an idea of where they stand before making their ultimate decision.

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However, the current coronavirus pandemic has put any plans for such scouting events on hold, and there is serious doubt as to whether they will be held this summer.  That’s not going to make Ramsey’s decision any easier, even if the NBA Draft is pushed back to the end of the summer or into the early fall as expected.

Of course, Texas Tech basketball fans are not only curiously watching what Jahmi’us Ramsey will do this offseason after averaging 15 points per game and breaking the school’s freshman scoring record, but we also can’t help but obsess over how the scholarship number game will play out.  That’s another important aspect of Ramsey’s decision.

Currently, only three players from last year’s team have left the program.  Both T.J. Holyfield and Chris Clarke have exhausted their eligibility and center Russell Tchewa has entered the transfer portal after just one season with the Red Raiders.

However, five players are set to join the roster this year (three freshmen signees, one transfer, and one JUCO signee) meaning that Tech has 15 players currently in the mix for the 13 scholarships NCAA rules permit.  Thus, even if Ramsey heads to the NBA, Tech will still have to open up one scholarship to accommodate all of the incoming signees.

That fact also makes it seem unlikely that Ramsey would come back to school after declaring for the draft.  The reality is that Tech can’t afford to wait until June to find out if he is going to be part of next year’s team given the need to sort out the scholarship situation as early as possible, especially if Beard wants to add yet another player (likely a big man).

Though we would all love to see Jahmi’us Ramsey in the Scarlet and Black for another year or three, we all knew from the moment he signed with the program that he was likely to be a one-and-done player.  But while Tech will miss his prolific scoring touch, the silver lining is that Chris Beard will have yet another NBA Draft pick to point to as he continues to show targets on the recruiting trail that he can help them reach their ultimate dream.