Mark Adams is up to the challenge

There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding the Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball program after the departure of coach Chris Beard.

One thing is certain: Mark Adams is your new head coach. Sure, the roster is all over the place with Micah Peavy entering the transfer portal and Terrence Shannon Jr. declaring for the draft, but there’s still a great core to work with.

Let’s start with the roster. As of right now, we know that Kyler Edwards and Kevin McCullar are planning on returning. Adams stated no player has told him that they aren’t coming back, so that’s a good sign.

The big question is whether Tech will have star guard Mac McClung returning next season. McClung averaged 15.5 points last year to lead Tech in scoring. He was a vital part of the offense and him returning would be a great start for Adams.

Another question mark on who is returning is Marcus Santos-Silva. It sounds as though Santos-Silva also will return to the Red Raiders, so the core is looking like one of the most solid returning cores in the Big 12, with or without McClung.

Along with Edwards, McCullar and Santos-Silva, it’s possible Chibuzo Agbo, Clarence Nadolny and Tyreek Smith will all be back, providing a good amount of youth for the future also. Expect Coach Adams to hit the transfer market as soon as he figures out who all is staying.

Adams is also being blessed with $1.5 million to go find his assistant coaching staff. Adams managed to retain assistant coach Sean Sutton. Along with Sutton, as of now Adams has brought in former Portland State head coach Barret Peery.

Peery is widely known as a fantastic juco coach and coached for Indian Hills and College of Southern Idaho. He sits with a career head coaching record of 244-86 and will serve as Mark Adams associate head coach.

There are still a lot of holes to fill in the staff, but Adams is off to a fantastic start. One coaching target for the Red Raiders I would love to see them go after is David Peavy, Micah Peavy’s father. Peavy is a fantastic high school coach for Duncanville and has provided not only Micah, but also coached Jahmi’us Ramsey before he was at Tech. There are rumors he’s going to join the staff, but nothing substantive so far.

Coach Adams has a lot on his plate for this offseason, but he’s no rookie. The Red Raiders are looking to go into next year with a veteran squad ready to give the Big 12 some hell.