Texas Tech basketball: Potential starting lineups after a busy offseason

Option 2: McCullar, Shannon, Calhoun, Obanor, Williams

In recent days, some college basketball “insiders” have tweeted out the idea that Florida State transfer Sardaar Calhoun is a potential starter for Tech this season.  That would make sense given that he brings to the table something that this team is not necessarily abounding in….outside shooting.

In his one season with the Seminoles, the 6-foot-6 Virginia native was a 39.7% shooter from long distance.  He made 23 buckets from 3-point land while scoring just three more buckets than that from inside the arc.  In other words, he is a catch-and-shoot guard who is more comfortable shooting from downtown than he is driving to the hole.

But should Tech turn to the former JUCO standout as a starter, it would be a massive increase in the load that Calhoun would have to shoulder for his team.  That’s because last season, he played only 14.2 minutes per game while making no starts.  Thus, it’s fair to wonder if he’s capable of playing a starter’s role and logging 25 or more minutes per game while maintaining his effectiveness.

Calhoun will also have to improve as a defender if he wants to be someone Adams relies heavily upon.  Last season, he was an offensive specialist who averaged 14.9 points per 40 minutes played but who gave up an average of 103,2 points per 100 possessions, which would have been one of the worst marks on last season’s Red Raider roster.

Also, this lineup would make McCullar the unquestioned primary ball-handler for the Red Raiders and there’s reason to wonder if that extra burden would decrease his effectiveness in other areas such as defense and rebounding, two areas where he’s been arguably Tech’s most effective player over the last two seasons.

This lineup is intriguing because it solves one of the roster’s greatest shortcomings, 3-point shooting.  But it still isn’t a perfect solution.  So might Tech turn to a more natural ball-handler to join the starting five?