After a rare draft drought, Xavier Edmonds and Gavin Sykes headline a new wave of Horned Frogs aiming to impress scouts and restore TCU’s professional pipeline.
For five years, finding a TCU product somewhere in the NBA wasn't particularly difficult.
Desmond Bane became a first-round pick in 2020. R.J. Nembhard followed him into the league a year later, and Damion Baugh, Emanuel Miller and Micah Peavy eventually turned their time in Fort Worth into NBA opportunities of their own.
Then came 2026.
TCU didn't have a player selected in the NBA Draft, nor did another former Horned Frog emerge to continue the program's recent run.
So who's next?
The Horned Frogs don't enter the 2026-27 season with an obvious first-round prospect on their roster. But if we're looking for the player with the clearest opportunity to change that, Xavier Edmonds deserves to be first in line.
Edmonds averaged 12.7 points and 6.5 rebounds across 35 games last season, earning All-Big 12 Third Team honors while recording 11 double-doubles.
And his production actually improved once conference play began.
The 6-8, 258-pound forward averaged 14.6 points and 8.4 rebounds against Big 12 opponents while shooting 55.9 percent from the field.
There was another encouraging number buried in his breakout season, too.
43.6 percent.
That's what Edmonds shot from beyond the arc, albeit on limited volume. For a forward with his frame trying to generate professional interest, proving that shooting touch can hold up over a larger sample could certainly help.
Edmonds isn't TCU's only candidate, though.
Gavin Sykes may possess the more intriguing long-term upside after averaging 19.4 points and shooting 38.7 percent from three as a freshman at Long Beach State.
The 6-4 guard earned Big West Freshman of the Year honors, broke the program's freshman records for single-season and single-game scoring and ranked sixth nationally among freshmen in scoring.
Now we'll find out whether it translates to the Big 12.
If it does, TCU suddenly has a young guard with size and proven scoring ability who could become significantly more interesting to NBA evaluators.
Micah Robinson also deserves consideration after finishing last season with consecutive 18-point performances against Ohio State and Duke in the NCAA Tournament.
None of the three should be penciled into the 2027 NBA Draft right now.
Fortunately, the best NBA player TCU has produced in years is now around to help.
Bane was named TCU's volunteer chief basketball officer this summer, a role that includes mentoring players and serving as a liaison between the program and NBA personnel.
TCU's recent pipeline to the league finally hit a speed bump in 2026.
Edmonds, Sykes and Robinson now have a season — and a pretty qualified resource in Bane — to make sure it doesn't become a trend.
