Texas A&M basketball's new basketball coach is a gamble— but one with high payoff

Texas A&M basketball set to hire Bucky McMillan as new head coach: Why this hire is the ultimate risk with ultimate payoff

Texas A&M basketball has found their new head man.

Listed as our top option for the job in a column earlier today, Bucky McMillan is set to be the new head coach for the Aggies following a report from Pete Thamel.

The AD for Texas A&M moved expeditiously after being turned down by their top option in Chris Beard. The Aggies have zeroed in on this hire after having an opening officially for only a few days.

So, what are the Aggies getting in McMillan? Is this a good hire, or was the panic button hit after Beard's rejection?

The now-former Samford head man runs a style that is about as opposite from Buzz Williams as you can get, which is something that many Aggie fans will be happy to hear. His high-octane offense and uptempo, aggressive style will be quite the change of pace in Aggieland— not only for the fans, but for opposing teams who come into Reed Arena.

It's hard to overstate the shift that this is from Buzz's style. It would also be hard to overstate the risk in terms of the floor that this hire has.

When Alabama hired Nate Oats a few years ago, it was viewed as a high-risk hire as well. That's obviously worked out for them, but it's not a terrible analog for what the Aggies have just done. Both Oats and McMillan were highly successful in the high school ranks before making the jump to college, and ascended quickly to a top job.

As exciting as "Bucky Ball" is, it could fall completely flat, leaving the Aggies in an even worse position than they are currently in. This is a gamble, for sure— but if the numbers hit, the Aggies may have just punched their ticket to multiple final fours. That's one Texas-sized "if," though.