Texas Tech basketball: Red Raiders not in top 10 of No. 1 player in Texas

Monday, five-star recruit Harrison Ingram released his top 10 schools, and surprisingly, the Texas Tech basketball program didn’t make the list.

We’ve come to assume that Chris Beard’s Texas Tech basketball program is going to be in the mix for virtually every high-profile recruit it targets.  But we learned on Monday that such won’t always be the case.

The No. 1 player in Texas in the class of 2021, Harrison Ingram, released his top 10 schools on Twitter and the Red Raiders were nowhere to be found. The Dallas product has Baylor, Memphis, Louisville, Purdue, Michigan, Stanford, Tennessee, North Carolina, Arkansas, and Texas A&M still in the running for his services.

The 6-foot-6 forward is ranked the No. 17 player in the country by 247Sports.  And back in October, he was in Lubbock for an official visit.  However, it appears that he’s looking elsewhere.

https://twitter.com/Harrisoniingram/status/1259983916611571713?s=20

"Brian Snow of 247Sports has this scouting report: “A unique prospect with what many would describe as an “old man” type of game. Ingram is one of the most intelligent kids in the country both on the court and off of it. He has a 4.0 GPA and has a bright future in every aspect of life. On the court he is kind of a point forward who uses savvy, skill and intelligence to dominate games. Ingram can play on the ball or off of it, knows how to create space for himself by changing speeds, and is one of the better passers in the class. Also, despite not being a fantastic athlete, Ingram is a very solid rebounder, and competes on the defensive end. His elite IQ and skill make him one of the best prospects in the class, and someone who will exceed his physical tools as a player and producer.”More from Wreck'Em RedTexas Tech football: Red Raider fans need to know about these MountaineersTexas Tech football: Red Raiders land first commit for class of 2025Texas Tech football: Why have the Red Raiders struggled on the road under McGuire?Texas Tech football: Why the Red Raiders can compete for a Big 12 titleTexas Tech football: Plenty of questions remain as conference play arrives"

The tidbits from Snow about Ingram’s IQ, both on and off the court, are interesting and are likely one reason why the 247Sports crystal ball projections have him headed to Stanford.  But the remarks about his defense and rebounding would make him seem like a perfect fit in Lubbock.

If Palo Alto, California is where he heads, one has to believe the academic side of the equation will be a factor.  That’s because basketball hasn’t been Stanford’s calling card in recent years.

The Cardinal have not been to the NCAA Tournament since 2014.  And their 20-12 mark in 2019-20 was just the second winning season they have posted in the last five years.  In that time, Standford has managed only one year with a  winning record in PAC 12 play (2017-18), including this past year when they went 9-9.

It is also interesting to wonder how heavily a school’s academics will play a role for a top-20 player in any class given that the expectation of virtually every recruit ranked that high is that they will head to the NBA long before they earn their degree.  Certainly, they can always finish their education after basketball is over but even for a player as studious as Ingram, it seems a bit unusual (but also admirable) for academics to factor so heavily into the decision, if that is indeed the case.  (It may not be as huge of a factor as we might assume and he may just like northern California or the Stanford coaches.)

But while Beard has missed out on this top Texas target, we have no doubt that he will be in the mix for several more.  Also, keep in mind that the 2021 Texas Tech basketball recruiting class is likely to be somewhat small given that the current roster has only two seniors, Davide Moretti and new grad transfer Marcus Santos-Silva.

Of course, there is always unexpected turnover and attrition in the program every offseason so we are confident that there will be more than two new faces on the roster when the 2021-22 season arrives.  But it appears that the highest-ranked player in Texas, Harrison Ingram, won’t be one of them.