Five-star prospect Ron Holland announced Friday that he is leaving Texas and reopening his recruiting door after being ranked the sixth-ranked prospect in the class of 2023, according to 247Sports. The news comes as a blow to Texas 2023-24 roster predictions less than 24 hours after the Longhorns He got a commitment From the second seed in an offseason transfer in former Oral Roberts goalkeeper Max Abmas.
“I want to take this time to thank Coach RT (Rodney Terry) and the entire Texas coaching staff for their thoughtfulness, and I also want to thank the Longhorn Nation for all of their love and support,” Holland wrote on Twitter. “While this was a difficult process, I have decided to commit from (the) University of Texas and reopen for appointment. Tea will continue to be one of the top schools I have chosen.”
Holland’s decision comes just two weeks after his former five-star teammate at Texas A.J. Johnson made the announcement He plans to play professionally in Australia next season instead of joining the Longhorns. Their decisions place a higher degree of importance on the future NBA Draft Texans’ decisions under underclassmen Terese Hunter and Dillon Mitchell.
Both players were starters on the 2022-23 squad that made it to the Elite Eight and chose to go through NBA Pre-draft process. Hunter, guard, is ranked No. 41 in the CBS Sports NBA Draft Prospect rankings, while Mitchell, forward, is ranked No. 30. With forward Dylan DeSeau returning, Abmas on the way and Virginia transfer center Caden Shedrick committed, Coach Rodney has spotted Terry at least part of its core.
But getting at least one Hunter and Mitchell back now looks vital after Holland and Johnson’s decisions. Before committing to Texas, Holland also considered Arkansas and UCLA as finalists. The coach he originally decided to play with at Texas, Chris Bird, is now the coach at Ole Miss.