Shaka Smart’s recruiting impact was felt almost immediately when he added Columbia (SC) Dreher forward Tevin Mack to the Texas 2015 basketball class. Rated a high four star player, Mack was previously committed to VCU before following Shaka Smart to Austin. Mack signed his letter of intent in November before Smart departed, and VCU graciously released him from his commitment. Mack visited Georgia and Texas before ultimately joining the Longhorns and Shaka Smart. Mack is Shaka Smart’s first Texas recruit.
Mack stands six foot seven inches and brings a fantastic set of skills and athletic ability to The Forty Acres. At approximately 185 pounds there is plenty to work with in adding more weight to his frame. When you look at him he looks somewhat lean and skinny, understandably so. Most basketball players in high school at his height do not have decent bulk to them yet. He moves well and is able to get up and down the court with or without the ball, and he jumps very well allowing him to dunk with ease. I think Mack could be a high flyer if he wanted to, but that doesn’t seem to be his game, at least not right now.
He is another great shooter for the Longhorns and can sink a pull-up six footer or stretch it out all the way to beyond the three point line. Mack elevates well on his shot which gives him a great advantage on the jumper. He could clean up his form a little bit. He doesn’t extend his forearm all the way out, possibly because the power on his jumper comes from his leg and he has strong wrist action to get a lot of backspin on the ball. I don’t think this there is much cause for concern here, as he has a great stroke and range is no issue for him.
Mack is a fantastic one-on-one player. He dribbles very well and employs a good variety of moves and cross-overs to attack the rim or pull up for a jumper inside or behind the arch. He can attack with either the left or right and has the ability to go hard and fast one way before utilizing a pull up with a through the legs or behind the back crossover. Mack attacks the rim very well, making great use of his size to take smaller players to the rack. On film he flashes the ability to finish against taller opponents as well.
Mack shows good handles, dribbling under control with a great set of moves. He can be deadly in the open court with the ball. I like how fundamental his dribbling is. He doesn’t carry his dribble high and he shows efficiency with the ball. Shaka Smart has three great ball handlers in this class.
An area Mack can improve on under the tutelage of Coach Smart is learning to play with a sense of urgency. Mack is very controlled and seems to have an even temper on the floor. Losing his cool won’t be a problem, but I would like to see him really explode on open dunks and drives. He has the ability to make a statement on the court. He can also stand to add a screen game that would give another dimension to his dribble-drive. Lastly, like all young players he can always clean up his handles. He’s not a bad dribbler, but even NBA players are constantly working on their handles.
Once again another fantastic young player for Coach Smart to groom. With Barnett and Mack the forward position looks to be in fantastic shape.
