Former Texas forward Declan Duru Jr. has committed to UC Santa Barbara after limited minutes with the Longhorns last season.
Former Texas forward Declan Duru Jr. has found his next college basketball stop, giving UC Santa Barbara an intriguing upside play through the transfer portal.
Duru, a sophomore from Munich, Germany, committed to the Gauchos on Thursday after spending the past few weeks in the portal.
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His time at Texas never fully took off, but his recruiting profile and physical tools still make him a player worth watching in the Big West.
During the 2025-26 season, Duru averaged 1.3 points and 1.2 rebounds in 11 appearances for the Longhorns. He didn’t get a major role in Austin, but he grabbed at least one rebound in nine of those games, showing flashes of the interior activity that once made him a top-120 national recruit.
Now he’ll get a fresh start at UC Santa Barbara, a program coming off an 18-14 season and an 11-9 finish in Big West play. For the Gauchos, Duru adds size, athleticism and developmental upside near the basket.
The next step is obvious. Duru will need to become more consistent offensively and improve at the free-throw line after shooting 25 percent there last season.
Still, a change of scenery could help unlock more of the player scouts saw coming out of high school.
His departure is also part of a much larger Texas roster reset. Since the Longhorns’ March Madness run ended, Sean Miller’s program has lost nine players to the transfer portal, along with Dailyn Swain to the NBA Draft.
Texas has worked quickly to rebuild, adding David Punch, Amari Evans, Mikey Lewis, Isaiah Johnson and Elyjah Freeman as part of a retooled roster in Austin.
For Duru, though, the move is about opportunity. At UC Santa Barbara, he should have a better chance to earn minutes, rebuild confidence and prove he can become a reliable frontcourt piece at the college level.
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