Texas A&M Basketball: Henry Coleman is the most underrated SEC hooper

The Texas A&M basketball team was not supposed to be very good this year. Heck, after a close win against Texas A&M-Kingsville in a preseason exhibition match, it seemed like the Aggies may have somehow regressed from a disappointing 8-10 year in 2020. That doesn’t look to be the case.

The Aggies have quickly become the most surprising college basketball team in the country in 2021, clawing their way to a 15-2 record around the midpoint of the season. In a sense, Buzz Williams has arrived.

The strange thing, however, about this team is that there hasn’t been a single star player. The Aggies have six players who are averaging over eight points per game and none of these players have a scoring figure higher than 13.2 PPG. They’re playing complimentary basketball, though one player should be considered a difference-maker.

Duke basketball transfer Henry Coleman has made a huge difference for the Texas A&M basketball team

I don’t want to diminish anything that other Texas A&M basketball players have done. Quenton Jackson has been the team’s best scorer, averaging 13.2 points per contest while Wade Taylor has stepped up as one of the best freshmen in the country.

To put it simply, Henry Coleman is the most complete basketball player on the team and the biggest year-to-year difference for the Aggies. This was immediately evident after he kicked off the season with a 27-point performance against North Florida.

On the season, Coleman has been effective offensively, scoring 10.5 points per game — that’s second on the team. On the glass, he’s also second on the team with 5.5 rebounds and he isn’t slacking defensively. Coleman is also one of the feistiest defenders, ripping the ball away 1.4 times per contest in 2021.

There’s only one major category that sees Coleman truly separate himself — efficiency. The Aggie forward is knocking down over 62% of his shots. When he takes the ball to the bucket, you just feel confident that he can put it through the hoop. And that’s been his strength thus far under Buzz Williams.

Coleman isn’t the most amazing scorer, passer, rebounder, defender, or leader — he’s just really good at every single one of these things. The best players play as an embodiment of their team and that’s exactly what the Aggies have been thus far — really good without a true identity.

Henry Coleman’s name won’t show up in many headlines, but he might have been the biggest addition to the Texas A&M basketball team in 2021-22.