North Texas hired Daniyal Robinson last offseason to take over as head coach and he didn’t disappoint in year one. Many first seasons for head coaches are transition years, but Robinson led the Mean Green to a 19-14 overall record, keeping their defensive renown in place. They finished 43rd in defensive rebounding percentage, allowing just 70+ points in eleven games throughout the regular season.
While they did suffer some losses on the roster, they were able to retain some key players including their starting shooting guard. With some incoming offensive weapons from the portal and freshmen class, the Mean Green have worked on addressing the question marks around their effectiveness on offense.
On paper, this is a team that should win 20+ games during the 2026-2027 season and compete within a top-heavy American conference. Let’s dive into how their roster is shaping up!
Use the code “BracketBusters” when checking out at Crow’s Nest Coffee Roasters to receive 20% off your order! Want two bags of coffee shipped to your door every month? Sign up for a monthly subscription here and receive 25% off your monthly subscription!
Roster Turnover
Demarion Watson (Ineligible)
2.4 points, 2.3 rebounds
Josiah Shackleford (Ineligible)
6 points, 2.5 rebounds
Dylan Arnett (Ineligible)
7.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists
Will McClendon (Senior) ~ Pepperdine
13 points, 4 rebounds, 2.5 assists (4 games)
Buddy Hammer, Jr. (Senior) ~ Akron
4.1 points, 2.8 rebounds
David Terrell, Jr. (Senior) ~ SMU
13.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.7 steals
Curtis Stinson, Jr. (Sophomore) ~ Cleveland State
1.4 points, 0.9 rebounds
Cahmai Crosby (Senior) ~ Omaha
2.7 points, 1 rebound
With all things considered, they came out of the offseason looking solid on the roster turnover side of things. They knew they were going to lose Demarion Watson, Josiah Shackleford, and Dylan Arnett, although some were trying to gain an extra year of eligibility. I haven’t seen Arnett’s name tossed around on any of the recent eligibility charts, but he did enter the portal to try. The Mean Green have a couple of spots on the roster available, so you never know with how all of these lawsuits are ongoing every week.
David Terrell, Jr. is the largest loss in the portal as he’ll be headed to SMU where I’m sure he secured a solid NIL package. He stepped up last season, growing into not just a strong playmaker, but an offensive weapon as well. He jumped up from averaging 8.3 points with 3.9 assists to 13.5 points with 4.8 assists vs just 2.1 turnovers per game. However, Coach Robinson was able to find a playmaker in the portal to fill that void.
Returning Players
Cole Franklin (Senior)
6.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.3 steals
Je’Shawn Stevenson (Junior)
17.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
Reece Robinson (Junior)
7.5 points, 4.5 rebounds
Ousmane Ndour (Sophomore)
Redshirted
EJ Horton (Sophomore)
2.9 points, 1.2 rebounds
Cole Franklin (6’4)
Franklin followed his coach over to North Texas after appearing in 25 games as a freshman at Cleveland State. Last season, his role stepped up as he averaged 6.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.3 steals per game while starting in 23 of the 33 games he appeared in. The 6’4 guard shot 41.1% overall and 26.2% from beyond the arc on 1.8 attempts per game. He had some nice games, including 21 points with seven rebounds against UT San Antonio and 15 points with five rebounds and four steals against Tulsa in an electric triple overtime game in the American Conference Tournament. He’s not going to light it up on the offensive end, but he’s an ideal glue guy who plays solid defense and will stuff the stat sheet.
His metrics tell a similar story as he finished with a 101.1 offensive rating, 48.1% true shooting percentage, 13.3% defensive rebounding percentage, 2.4% block percentage, and a 3.1% steal percentage (185th overall). While his overall offensive statistics aren’t mind blowing, they did improve as the season went on. In the American, he finished with a 105.5 offensive rating and he shot 54.8% from inside the arc, which was the 21st best in the conference.
Je’Shawn Stevenson (6’2)
We’ve talked about some impact players returning to their non-power conference teams, but Je’Shawn Stevenson ranks alongside someone like Jake Hall returning to New Mexico. Stevenson is a next-level type player that immediately helps solidify the Mean Green as a potential competitor in the American next season. The 6’2 guard averaged 17.3 points with 3.5 rebounds, two assists, and two steals per game while shooting 38.4% overall and 30.3% from three-point.
Looking at his metrics, the star guard finished with a 27% possession usage (180th in the nation), 51.2% true shooting percentage, 14.2% assist rate, 3.5% steal percentage (94th in the nation), all while committing just 1.6 fouls per game (46th in the nation). There could be some improvement on his three-point shooting as he took a whopping 231 attempts against Division I opponents, but he is strong at the free throw line. He shot 84.3% on 159 attempts while drawing 4.6 fouls per game.
After announcing that he’d return, North Texas fans had to rejoice. Stevenson is a high-impact player that elevates the potential that this team could have in the coming season.
Reece Robinson (6’8)
It’s no shocker that Head Coach Daniyal Robinson’s son is sticking around for another season with the Mean Green. While sometimes a coach’s son might play a significant depth role on a team, Reece is a strong rotational player. As a sophomore last year, he averaged 7.5 points with 4.5 rebounds per game while shooting 50.3% overall and 34% from deep. He thrived in against opponents in the non-conference slate; however, he put up some solid games in the American as well, including 13 points with nine rebounds against Tulane and 23 points with four rebounds against Charlotte.
Robinson looks like he could be setting himself up for a breakout season if you look at his metrics from last year. He finished with a 115.5 offensive rating, which jumped to 117.4 in conference play, a 10.7% offensive rebounding percentage which was 194th best in the country, 12.9% defensive rebounding percentage, and a 3.5% block percentage which was 336th best overall. Across the board, his metrics increased in the American where he turned himself into a consistent contributor on all ends of the court.
Ousmane Ndour (6’10)
Ndour is one of only two players on the roster at 6’10, and with other forwards last season, that could help guard the paint it made sense for the international prospect to take a developmental season as a redshirt. Prior to joining North Texas, he played for Maderas Sorli where he appeared in eleven games and averaged 10.2 points with 5.1 rebounds. He’s still a raw prospect, but I expect to see him earn some minutes this season as he gains experience. Look for him to average 10-ish minutes a game this season.
EJ Horton (6’3)
Horton appeared in 30 games as a freshman last year while averaging a shade over 10 minutes per game. The 6’3 guard averaged 2.9 points with 1.2 rebounds per game while shooting 43.2% overall and 25.7% from three-point on 1.2 attempts per game. While two of his best games came against non-Division I opponents, he showed some flashes of strong potential in other appearances. Against Saint Mary’s, he finished with seven points, two rebounds, two steals, and two blocks despite shooting just 1-6 from the floor Against Temple, he racked up 12 points, with four rebounds, and five steals in what proved to be a huge factor in their narrow 65-62 win.
There is no doubt he has some improvements to make on the offensive end as eluded to with some of his averages. He finished with just an 81.2 offensive rating, which did improve slightly to 83.0 in conference play. In other areas, his potential was represented well as he finished with an 11.0% defensive rebounding percentage, 3.4% block percentage, and a 3.9% steal percentage.
Roster Additions
Cash Chavis (Junior) ~ UT Arlington
10.5 points, 2.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.2 steals
Amar Amkou (Junior) ~ FAU
5.5 points, 2.2 rebounds
Mitchell Holmes (Junior) ~ SMU
1.7 points, 0.9 rebounds
Braylon Barnes (Sophomore) ~ Jones College (JUCO)
16.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.3 steals
Marcus Zelee (Freshman)
Aeneas Alexander (Freshman)
T.J. Crumble (Freshman)
Guards
Cash Chavis (6’2)
After starting his career at Arkansas, Chavis transferred to UT Arlington last season where he was able to give himself a larger opportunity. He started and appeared in 32 games for the Mavericks where he averaged 10.5 points, 2.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. The 6’2 guard shot 38.5% overall and 28% from beyond the arc on just 50 attempts total for the season.
He’s more of a true point guard, and one that serves as a facilitator and disrupter on the defensive end. Through the first five games of the season, he was averaging seven assists per game. However, he did improve on the offensive end towards the end of the season. Over the final seven games, he averaged 13.9 points while shooting 47.4% overall and 54.5% from three-point.
His metrics line up well with this as he finished with a 96.1 offensive rating overall vs a 98.6 rating in conference play. He was 376th overall in possession usage at 24.9%, and he took 24.9% of the team’s shots when he was on the court. Notably, he featured a 26.4 assist rate (163rd in the nation), 2.5% steal percentage (455th in the nation), all while shooting 79% from the line as he drew 4.5 fouls on average.
As the demand on his offense shrinks as he joins someone like Je’Shawn Stevenson, you should expect that his effectiveness on the offensive end will increase significantly. He doesn’t have the be the go-to guy that creates offense for himself on North Texas, rather he can focus on taking the right shot when needed while leading the offense as a floor general.
Braylon Barnes (6’4)
Barnes could not have put a better freshman season together in the JUCO ranks. The 6’4 guard averaged a whopping 16.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.3 steals per game while averaging 42.3% and 35% from three-point. He also racked up 186 free throw attempts while converting at an 81.7% clip.
As his stats elude to, he had some monster games last year. With any JUCO player, you don’t know how exactly his skills will translate to the next level in the first year. He is offensively too good to not be Division I level talent; however, this roster is loaded with guards. He’ll most likely come off the bench this season to provide a scoring option when Stevenson isn’t on the court.
Marcus Zelee (6’3)
Coming out of high school, Zelee was listed as a three-star player. He was a bit of a late bloomer as he started to get more looks and offers from late in 2025. He played at Austin Prep where he put up some fantastic numbers, averaging 13.5 points, 5.2 assists, and three steals per game. Zelee held offers from Iowa State, Arizona State, Mississippi State, Drake, and others.
I have no doubt that you’ll be seeing plenty of Marcus Zelee this season. He’s a tremendous two-way player with a ton of potential. He already has great size and vision on the court. He’s not going to start, but he will be coming off the bench in what will be a developmental season. If all goes well, he’ll be a star player for North Texas down the road.
Forwards
Amar Amkou (6’8)
While Amkou is technically listed as a junior, he played his first season in collegiate basketball last season for the Florida Atlantic Owls after missing his official freshman season due to an injury. He appeared in 26 games for the Owls while averaging 12.5 minutes per game. Despite not playing a large amount of minutes, he finished the season with a line of 5.5 points and 2.2 rebounds per game while shooting 44.1% overall from the floor and 36.4% from beyond the arc on 44 attempts.
He had some strong flashes of what he could become throughout the season. Against St. Bonaventure he finished with twelve points and three rebounds, and late in conference play he racked up 14 points with four rebounds and two assists against Memphis, and 14 points against North Texas in their one point loss. It’s obvious that he caught Daniyal Robinson’s eye in that game because it was arguably his best considering that his Memphis performance was in garbage time.
While his metrics are a bit inflated due to the minimal playing time, they still shined. He finished with a 112.9 offensive rating, 58% true shooting percentage, 9.1% defensive rebounding percentage, 7.8% offensive rebounding percentage, and a 3.2% block percentage.
Mitchell Holmes (6’10)
The former three-star appeared in 26 games for SMU last season while averaging 5.2 minutes per game. While most of his production of 1.7 points per game came in blowouts against much weaker opponents, he did rack up ten points in eleven minutes in the Mustangs’ 87-85 win over Butler.
With the limited playing time, his metrics are very skewed so we aren’t going to look too much into those. He brings in a strong frame with experience at a high level on a team that did reach the NCAA Tournament before falling to our mid-major darling Miami Ohio. He’ll see plenty of playing time this season in what will be his first opportunity with an expanded role.
Aeneas Alexander (6’7)
Alexander is another three-star freshman coming in for the Mean Green as he was ranked 325th overall in his class. He played at Pace Academy last year, as well as, Nike ProSkills U17, which finished in fourth at Peach Jam. He’s a true wing with a solid shot, but he probably needs to build out his frame a bit more. I don’t see him breaking into the rotation in a large way as a freshman, but he’s going to be a valuable player for the Mean Green in the long-run.
He held offers from UNLV, Tulsa, San Jose State, and other solid mid-majors.
T.J. Crumble (6’8)
Out of all the freshmen coming in, Crumble is the highest ranked at 294th in the incoming class. 247Sports has him listed as a three-star recruit while he held some tremendous offers, including Creighton, Dayton, Penn State, Stanford, Mississippi State, Michigan, Wisconsin, Notre Dame, Iowa, Houston, and many more programs. Needless to say, he was highly sought after.
He’s going to become an incredible player one day. He’s got the mobility, the size, and the ability to flex as forward on both the offensive and defensive ends. Despite having just 12 players on the roster, this team is deep. However, I’d be shocked if we don’t see Crumble somewhere around eight to ten minutes per game. Keep him on your list to watch for the long-term.
Want to support my writing, but don’t want to sign up for a monthly subscription? Consider “buying me a coffee” via the link below!
Sign up for Bracket Busters’ Discord to discuss all things Mid-Major Basketball!
Expectations
When you have a team that is top-50 in the country in defense, but just 275th in offense, you have the map to success lined out pretty clearly. However, this team doesn’t need to light it up on offense. Last season, they were 306th in tempo and 302nd in average possession length. That isn’t going to change either, looking at the players coming in. Let’s look at what their starting lineup could look like:
Cash Chavis
Je’Shawn Stevenson
Cole Franklin
Reece Robinson
Mitchell Holmes / Ousmane Ndour
I firmly believe that this starting lineup is pretty straightforward. With David Terrell, Jr. gone, Cash Chavis will step in as the starting point guard. He had to be one of the go-to guys on UT Arlington last season, so we should expect to see his efficiency improve more this season. He isn’t going to have to attempt 9.1 shots per game with someone like Je’Shawn Stevenson in the lineup. I will say, I’d like to see him boost the assist to turnover ratio as last season it was 3.5 vs 2.3, but this will be just his second season in control of an offense.
Rounding out the backcourt, Chavis will have Je’Shawn Stevenson. It’s hard to remember that he’s entering just his junior season after putting up 17.3 points last season. Despite the team ranking just 326th in three-point attempt rate, Stevenson attempted over seven shots from beyond the arc a game last year. He shot 38.4% overall and 30.3% from three-point, so there’s a reasonable chance that those averages improve even further this season. Keep in mind, he’s a star on the defensive end.
Looking at the small forward position, I listed Cole Franklin, but I could also see one of the newcomers like Amar Amkou sneaking in there as well. Franklin has been with Coach Robinson since he started his collegiate career at Cleveland State and he turned himself into a starter last season. He shot 41.1% overall and 26.2% from three-point, but like others on the roster he is defensive-minded.
Reece Robinson will be in the starting lineup this season once again. He started and appeared in all 33 games last year, and he’s one of the more efficient shooters on the roster at 50.3% overall. He’s strong on the boards and I’d love for him to step it up on defense and reach the one block or one steal per game average this season. Regardless, I think Robinson could have a breakout season in store for us this year.
The center position can go a few different ways. I think the competition will mainly be between Mitchell Holmes and Ousmane Ndour. Both players stand at 6’10 and possessexcellent frames. I lean towards Holmes because he’s coming in from SMU, so he has the experience on a team that ended up going to the NCAA Tournament, even if it was in a limited role. Ndour, on the other hand, is a raw talent, but one that could easily emerge as a threat depending on how practice goes over the next few weeks leading up to the season.
Looking at their bench, this is where I see the real improvement that I believe will help them take a step forward. Braylon Barnes is an immediate huge addition on the offensive end. When they lost McClendon last season after just four games, they lost an offensive spark. Barnes will help replace that and give them a lightning jolt off the bench. I like Amar Amkou in the rotation as he is still developing, but he flashed some strong signals last year at FAU that he’ll be able to contribute eight or more points per game in 20 minutes. Make sure you don’t sleep on the freshmen either, as Marcus Zelee, Aeneas Alexander, and T.J. Crumble are three players capable of playing in year one. I think you will mostly see Marcus Zelee just given the depth at the guard position, but Alexander and Crumble will also probably see some time here and there in their first developmental season.
At the end of the day, I’m still concerned about their production on offense. I’m banking on Stevenson stepping up to improve on efficiency, and Chavis to level out as he doesn’t have to do everything on this roster. Regardless, they are going to be just as good on the defensive end as they were last year, making me confident that they’ve improved enough to cross the 20-win threshold. Keep your eyes on the Mean Green this season.