Texas Longhorns Basketball: DeMarcus Holland Commits

After taking an official visit to Austin this past weekend, 2012 combo guard DeMarcus Holland (Garland Naaman Forest) has committed to the Texas Longhorns, per his AAU Coach Lawrence Mann. Holland had previously been committed to the South Florida Bulls, but decommitted in late February, around the time he started receiving interest from Texas. He is expected to sign his Letter of Intent (LOI) on April 11, the first day of the Late Signing Period.

After the early entry departure of J'Covan Brown, Texas had a scholarship available, and Rick Barnes and staff were apparently concerned about backcourt depth. From last year's team, Texas returns sophomores Myck Kabongo, Julien Lewis, Sheldon McClellan, and Sterling Gibbs. However, the first three players will likely start at point guard, shooting guard, and small forward, respectively, leaving Gibbs as the only returning scholarship backup. Further, prior to Holland's commitment, the only guard in the 2012 class was point guard Javan Felix, expected to be Kabongo's understudy next fall.

Holland is rated as a three-star prospect by Rivals and Scout, and just a two-star prospect by ESPN. There is limited video footage on Holland (see below), but from what I've seen and from recruiting notes, Holland appears to be a tall combo guard who possesses a solid all-around skill set. He looks like a capable penetrator with a decent wingspan that makes him an asset on defense and on the glass. From a weaknesses perspective, he needs to work on his scoring prowess, particularly his outside shooting, and will have to add bulk to his rail-thin frame.

Holland's playing time next year is likely predicated on how much Lewis and Gibbs improve over the off-season. If Lewis proves capable of playing 25-30 minutes a game, and Gibbs can be an asset as a scorer and ball-handler off the bench, there appears to be little need for Holland to contribute major minutes. On the other hand, Holland possesses a size advantage over the smaller Gibbs, and perhaps can leverage that to be the plus defender and glue guy that Gibbs simply was not this past year.

There has been some talk that Holland could be a candidate for a redshirt, making his recruitment even more puzzling. Of the guards mentioned above, only Kabongo looks like an NBA early entry candidate, meaning that the backcourt will be awfully crowded in the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons. With a similarly stacked frontcourt, Texas is in a scholarship crunch starting with the 2013 class. I have repeatedly stated why that should be considered a problem.

With the commitment of Holland and a LOI signature expected from current Texas commit Cameron Ridley, Texas has just one more available scholarship in the 2012 class. Currently, Texas is recruiting five-star small forward Devonta Pollard, and may possibly get involved with current Tulsa shooting guard Jordan Clarkson, who is considering a transfer.

Via Maxpreps