Within a matter of days Texas won two straight games in the SEC Tournament, entering the tournament as the 13th best team in the conference. Their wins weren’t just any wins either: Vanderbilt (a bubble team) and Texas A&M, which is projected to get a No. 3 in the NCAA Tournament, per ESPN's Joe Lunardi.
Sure, they are quickly becoming a team to watch in the NCAA Tournament as they’ll probably go from being a bubble team to a tournament lock by Selection Sunday. But let’s dive a little deeper. Why exactly is Texas already becoming a March Madness underdog? One Tre Johnson.
And the best part is if Texas keeps winning and Johnson continues to perform the way he has so far in the SEC Tournament, his draft stock is going to take off.
That’s the caveat to playing in the NCAA Tournament; surprise teams make surprise runs and surprise draft prospects. In Johnson’s case, it could go from being a fringe top 5 pick to being selected with the No. 2 pick.
Tre Johnson’s draft stock could skyrocket if Texas goes on an NCAA Tournament run
The worst thing that could happen for Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper was play on a Rutgers team that has made just two NCAA Tournament appearances since 1991. Harper and Bailey weren’t going to be enough to carry Rutgers through the gauntlet that is the Big Ten, let alone to the NCAA Tournament.
Because of that, Harper nor Bailey will benefit from the extra exposure that follows the NCAA Tournament which means Johnson gets to play his way up the mock drafts.
Cooper Flagg, despite being injured during the ACC Tournament and jeopardizing the rest of his freshman season, he’s the consensus No. 1 pick. Johnson could leap to the No. 2 pick.
In the first two games of the SEC Tournament, Johnson is averaging 19.5 points, which is right around his 20.1 average this season. The next closest player is averaging 12 points.
You could make the argument Johnson should be the No. 2 pick after Flagg, presumably, because he’s averaging more points than both Bailey and Harper while also playing in the toughest college basketball conference this year.
Johnson is already showcasing how talented he is. With an NCAA Tournament run and a March Madness of his own, Johnson could prove he’s worth a top two pick in the NBA Draft.
The door is wide open for him to control his own draft stock. It could very well turn this NBA Draft upside down.