New Texas A&M basketball head coach Bucky McMillan is working hard this week. He needs to build a completely depleted roster after former head coach Buzz Williams left for Maryland early last week. Williams took four players, including forwards Pharrel Payne and Solomon Washingon, to the Big Ten for the 2025 season.
The future is now, and McMillan is looking for players who fit his intense system. He is already making significant progress with North Alabama star guard Jacari Lane, who is visiting College Station and attended Texas A&M baseball's Game 2 matchup vs. South Carolina on Friday, watching the Aggies destroy the Gamecocks 17-0.
If McMillan can land Lane, that is the first step towards hopefully leading to a flood of commitments just a couple of days after the recruiting dead period, which could include one of the top available big men in the transfer portal. On Friday, it was revealed that Texas A&M is a finalist to land former Arizona State forward Shawn Phillips, who averaged 5.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG, and 1.1 BPG last season.
Standing at 7'0", Phillips is raw but filled with potential. He shoots 57% from the field and 60% from the free-throw line. In need of size up front, Phillips would be a perfect fit in McMillan's system and would thrive around the rim, given his high field-goal percentage.
Texas A&M have made the top 6 for Arizona State transfer Center Shawn Phillips per @RoAClear
— Kannon Torres (@TorresKannon) April 12, 2025
The 7-Foot Big man averaged 5.4 PPG | 5.2 RPG | 1.1 BPG | on over 55% FG
Cincinnati, Kansas, Memphis, Missouri and Villanova are all teams competing to land the Dayton, Ohio native pic.twitter.com/BGUxgw5U2g
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: Texas A&M is a finalist to land Arizona State transfer Shawn Phillips
