Texas Texas basketball: Nimari Burnett making strides as Big 12 play nears

In the last two Texas Tech basketball games, true freshman Nimari Burnett has started making strides just in time for the start of conference play.

Patience isn’t necessarily a trait that sports fans are known for. That’s true of Texas Tech basketball fans as well.

Thus, much was expected of true freshman Nimari Burnett right out of the gate. After all, he is the first McDonald’s All-American to ever sign with the Red Raiders and he’s the highest-rated high school player that Tech has ever landed.

But despite his tremendous pedigree, early in the season, he appeared overwhelmed and lost when trying to figure out life as a college basketball player. That left many fans wondering if he was a bit overhyped.

Fortunately, in his last two games, the Chicago native has made some significant strides. Though he hasn’t yet looked like a dominant All-American, he’s been one of Tech’s better guards during that time.

Against Grambling on Sunday afternoon in an 81-40 win, Burnet had a 12 point showing, his first double-digit outing of the year. And he followed that up with 10 points Wednesday night against a stout Abilene Christian defense that beguiled most of his teammates. In fact, in that game, he and Kyler Edwards (19 points) were the only Red Raiders in double digits in a 51-44 victory.

That average of 11 points per game in his last two showings is an increase of almost 7 points per game from what he averaged in Tech’s first four games of the season. And most of his scoring increase has come in an area of the game in which his team has struggled this year.

Going 15 of 17 at the free-throw line in the last two games, Burnett has been an 88.2% free-throw shooter during a time when his team has desperately needed someone to step up at the line. That’s in contrast to the 31-47 (65.9%) that the rest of his team has shot at the line in the last two games.

While free throws aren’t sexy, they are valuable, and were it not for the points that came one at a time, on Wednesday, Tech would have lost to ACU. What’s more, they are also a sign that Burnett is starting to play more confidently and assertively over the past week.

But scoring hasn’t been the only way that the 6-foot-5 guard has impacted games as of late. He’s also been doing some excellent work on the defensive end of the floor.

In fact, he’s come away with nine steals combined in the last two contests. That includes a whopping six that he had against Grambling.

Though his offense has struggled this year, his defensive intensity has never been in question. And given his nearly 7-foot wingspan, Burnett has the makings of a future lock-down perimeter defender.

The advanced analytics like what Burnett is doing on the defensive end of the court. That’s because he is second on the team in defensive rating (an estimate of the number of points a player surrenders per 100 possessions). Giving up just 64.9 points per 100 possessions, he trails only Vlad Goldin meaning that of the players averaging double-digits in minutes played, Burnett has arguably been Tech’s best defender.

More from Wreck'Em Red

Also helping his team pick up the last two wins has been Burnett’s work on the glass. Averaging 3.6 boards per game over his past three appearances, he’s had an offensive rebound in each of his last two games (including two against ACU).

These are all great signs for the Red Raiders, who need Burnett to emerge as a key rotation piece off the bench. That’s especially true with both Kevin McCullar and Terrence Shannon unavailable due to left ankle sprains.

We have to remember that it is just six games into Burnett’s Texas Tech basketball career. That’s hardly enough time to make any judgments about him as a player.

For instance, in the first six games of former Red Raider great Keenan Evans’ career, he had just one 10-point game and he averaged 5.1 points per game which is nearly a point and a half below what Burnett is averaging.

But Evans didn’t arrive with the title of “McDonald’s All-American” and thus, he was extended some time to grow as a true freshman. He also wasn’t playing for a team that had Big 12 and National Title aspirations meaning that the microscope on him was far less intense.

Burnett is starting to show signs of being a key contributor to this year’s team even if he’s yet to take over a game the way we’d like for him to. That will come in time. But for now, we should appreciate the strides he’s taken over the last two games and be encouraged by the fact that he’s starting to look more comfortable on both ends of the floor just in time for the start of Big 12 play.

Related Story. The all-decade shooting guards. light

Home/Texas Tech Basketball