The basketball offseason is in full swing and portal classes are beginning to take shape. Sean Miller and the Longhorns have found themselves in the thick of the discussion, signing two of the top 14 transfers according to 247Sports. Then, they added Amari Evans and Elyjah Freeman, two young, high-ceiling players with elite defense. That’s caught the attention of national analysts all over the country.
Today’s ROTHSTEIN 45 is LIVE.TOP 10:1. Florida 2. Michigan3. Illinois 4. Duke5. UConn6. Arizona7. Michigan State 8. Virginia9. Texas10. Arkansas CC: @FDSportsbook, @FanDuelResearch.https://t.co/Qek0R1gFWh
The Longhorns are 2nd in 247Sports’ portal rankings, just trailing Louisville. They’ve found at least three starters within this group and a quality bench piece. It stands to reason there is still a move or two to come but it’s unlikely there will be a “big splash” left in the portal. That doesn’t mean Sean Miller is done improving this roster.
Texas is now ranked #1 overall transfer activity at https://t.co/vMpdrDnlBN, and they have the #2 incoming transfer class. They have improved their roster more through the portal than any other team in the country. Both Isaiah Johnson and Elyjah Freeman are top-10 transfers. https://t.co/tZSDxAc8rq
The roster construction isn’t over. Right now, the Longhorns are seemingly a consensus Top 10 team heading into next season. If Dailyn Swain decides to forgo the NBA draft and return to Austin, you could be looking at a Top 5 team preseason. Those are heights(and expectations) that haven’t been typical around the Forty Acres recently.
Two thoughts on the declaration of Dailyn Swain:1) He definitely is a 1st rounder in the 2026 NBA Draft 2) Next year’s draft is significantly less talented and bodes much better for his Lottery chances.
Isaiah Johnson is a true offensive engine coming in from Colorado. David Punch and Matas Vokietaitis figure to be one of the best front courts in the country. Amari Evans and Elyjah Freeman bring elite wing defense with offensive upside. Add to that a freshman class with Austin Goosby, Texas Player of the Year Bo Ogden and more immediate impact players.
This is the best roster(on paper) Texas basketball has had in quite a while and it seems the expectations will be high nationally. Nothing is guaranteed except Longhorn Nation will have much more excitement entering basketball season than in recent memory.
This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Longhorns portal class putting them into preseason Top 10 lists