No. 5 Texas Longhorns: Projected Rotation & Season Outlook
One would have to consider Year 1 of the Sean Miller era at Texas a success. There were a lot of growing pains, but in the end, the Longhorns were just two points away from knocking off a really strong Purdue team to reach the Elite Eight.
Miller will bring a ton of talent into next season, led by point guard Isaiah Johnson and big man David Punch. Johnson started just 15 games as a freshman and averaged nearly 17 PPG, while Punch proved to be one of the most difficult forwards to handle in the Big 12 last season.
Matas Vokietaitis will be the one returning piece for coach Miller. He had a terrific sophomore season for the Longhorns, averaging over 15 PPG. The 7-footer will form a dynamic 1-2 attack in the frontcourt alongside Punch. Saint Mary's transfer Mikey Lewis and Auburn transfer Elyjah Freeman should both have a good shot to start to begin the season.
There's a case to be made that the most important players for the Longhorns next year will be 5-star freshmen Marcus Spears Jr. and Austin Goosby. Spears Jr. was the No. 1 ranked prospect in the class of 2027, but opted to reclassify and will join the Longhorns for the upcoming season. He is a dynamic lefty with plenty of bounce and touch around the rim.
Goosby is a terrific athlete with a great feel for the game, but his development as a shooter will be important. Fellow Top 50 recruit Bo Ogden addresses the shooting need, however. The Austin, TX native was one of the best snipers in the class. All three players could potentially make a push to start even with plenty of transfer talent coming in.
This team has a higher ceiling than the one Texas had last season, and that team went 21-15, but it will fall on Miller to develop some of the inexperienced pieces to be able to get to where they want to go. Buy-in on the defensive end was a major issue last season for the Longhorns, but Punch should really be able to set the tone in that regard coming over from an extremely physical system at TCU.
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2026-27 Texas Basketball Projected Starting Lineup:
PG: Isaiah Johnson (16.9 PPG at Colorado)
SG: Mikey Lewis (13.9 PPG, 2.1 3PM at Saint Mary's)
SF: Elyjah Freeman (9.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG at Auburn)
PF: David Punch (14.1 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 1.9 BPG at TCU)
C: Matas Vokietaitis (15.6 PPG, 7.1 RPG)
Key Reserves: Marcus Spears Jr. (No. 4 in SC Next 100), Austin Goosby (No. 20 in SC Next 100), Amari Evans (4.1 PPG at Tennessee), Bo Ogden (No. 44 in SC Next 100), John Clark (Redshirt), Lewis Obiorah (Redshirt), Joe Sterling (4-Star Freshman)
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