This Texas Tech basketball roster is among the best in the conference and has the potential to hopefully get even better, especially in the frontcourt.
With UCF transfer Jamichael Stillwell still ineligible for Texas Tech and JT Toppin recovering from injury, it leaves Tech’s frontcourt in a questionable place. Luckily, Texas Tech will have Toppin back at some point during the season; however, the timetable is still far too foggy to nail down.
Grant McCasland Speaks on JT Toppin
When speaking with CBS’s Jon Rothstein, head coach Grant McCasland gave an update on where Toppin’s recovery stands and the status he enters the 2026-2027 season with.
“I'll tell you two things, and I haven't spoken about this publicly, but one is I do think he's [Toppin] ahead of schedule, and maybe if you're just looking at timelines of how people respond, leg strength-wise, diameter, you know, explosiveness, those things that matter. And he does do some individual work with skill development. So it's not all just him doing some skill stuff. We aren't doing any kind of live, and he's still trying to progress to a point where he can get to where he can practice.”
McCasland isn’t taking any chances on the road to recovery for Toppin, and is even keeping Toppin far away from any live practice in the near future.
“And we're not going to practice him in a short amount of time and play him,” McCasland said. “We're really going to ramp him up slow in practices, and we're not even close to him practicing right now.”
When asked about the eventual timeline for Toppin to at least return to practice, McCasland was noncommittal in his approach as well. “I really can't say one, but I can say that he's progressed at a rate that we feel like he can make an impact on this team significantly, and that's kind of where he stands,” McCasland said.
Toppin Would Have Redshirted
The Red Raiders will eagerly be awaiting the return of their superstar power forward, who has been among the best in college basketball. Before the NCAA’s 5-for-5 rule they applied recently, there was speculation that Toppin may have redshirted for the Red Raiders to retain his eligibility. McCasland cleared the air and confirmed that Toppin would have redshirted if not for the NCAA’s new rule.
“Yes. JT [Toppin] 100% would have redshirted. And a big part of that, I think, is attributed to the fact that he loves being in college. I mean, he went through the draft in between being at New Mexico and coming to Texas Tech, and he did not enjoy that process.”
“He loves Texas Tech, and that speaks to, I think, the people here, but also to his ability to navigate it. But then when you can play one minute and get a whole season and get a whole year back, I mean, obviously it takes any kind of even discussion out of it. And so I honestly do believe he would have redshirted the whole year if it weren't for five for five.”
For a team like Texas Tech, which enters the season with a fantastic roster built around one of the best coaches in the sport, they will have success with or without Toppin. However, Tech's return of a superstar player at some point this season will elevate the team to the next level, and fans will eagerly await Toppin’s return.
More Texas Tech Content Found Here
Stay up-to-date on Texas Tech athletics by bookmarking Texas Tech On SI and following us onX/Twitter.
Add us as a preferred source on Google