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Texas Tech basketball: Five best-case scenarios for 2020-21

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TEXAS - JANUARY 25: Texas Tech Red Raiders cheerleaders stand on the court during a timeout during the second half of the college basketball game against the Kentucky Wildcats on January 25, 2020 at United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TEXAS - JANUARY 25: Texas Tech Red Raiders cheerleaders stand on the court during a timeout during the second half of the college basketball game against the Kentucky Wildcats on January 25, 2020 at United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /
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Xavier Musketeers forward Tyrique Jones (4) dunks over Georgetown Hoyas guard Mac McClung (2) in the first half of the NCAA Big East basketball game between the Xavier Musketeers and the Georgetown Hoyas at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020.Georgetown Hoyas At Xavier Musketeers
Xavier Musketeers forward Tyrique Jones (4) dunks over Georgetown Hoyas guard Mac McClung (2) in the first half of the NCAA Big East basketball game between the Xavier Musketeers and the Georgetown Hoyas at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020.Georgetown Hoyas At Xavier Musketeers /

McClung buys into the Texas Tech basketball program’s defensive identity

Everyone is talking about Mac McClung now that the Georgetown transfer has received his NCAA waiver and will be eligible right away.  But perhaps we are talking too much about his offense, which is calling card, and not enough about whether or not he will be a defensive liability.

Make no mistake, McClung has become one of the most well-known college basketball players in the country because of his propensity for hitting wild shots and throwing down circus dunks.  He averaged 15.7 points per game last year for the Hoyas and that scoring punch will be a welcome addition for a Texas Tech basketball team that is having to replace last year’s top two scorers, Jahmi’us Ramsey and Davide Moretti.

However, the key to McClung’s success under Beard will be whether or not he buys into the Texas Tech culture and embraces the defensive end of the court.  But that’s not something he did at Georgetown.

Last year, his defensive rating (an estimate of the number of points he allowed per 100 possessions) was just 104.9 and his career defensive rating is an ugly 107.2.  To put that into perspective, no player on last year’s Texas Tech basketball team had a defensive rating over 98.4 (which was Moretti’s rating).

It isn’t that McClung doesn’t have the ability to be a solid defender.  With athleticism the likes of his, the potential is there.  It’s that the culture at Georgetown didn’t require him to be great on that end of the curt.  In that sense, he’s reminiscent of former Red Raider grad transfer Matt Mooney.

Prior to coming to Tech, the shooting guard was known only for his scoring prowess and he had never had a defensive rating below 94.3.  However, because he embraced Beard’s defense-first mindset, he became one of the nation’s best perimeter defenders in 2018-19 and posted a defensive rating of 88.8.

If McClung buys in the way Mooney did, he will a superstar at Tech and a much better player than he was at Georgetown, even if his scoring dips a bit.  And for this year’s team to be a championship contender, his defensive willingness has to make his offensive explosiveness.

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