Many players on the Texas men’s basketball roster met each other for the first time this past offseason, and the 2026-27 season will be the first time they share the court with each other.
But for freshmen guard Austin Goosby and forward Marcus Spears Jr., this upcoming season won’t be the first time the two wear the same uniform.
The two Longhorn freshmen were teammates at Dynamic Prep, a preparatory school in North Dallas, just a season ago. Goosby was wrapping up his senior year of high school basketball, while the now-reclassified Spears Jr. was concluding his junior season.
“Austin came probably midway through my high school season, but I’ve been knowing Goosby longer than that,” Spears Jr. said on Sept. 30. “So being able to play with him halfway through my high school season and finishing it was super good. We connected from the jump.”
The close relationship Goosby and Spears Jr. have developed off the court has translated well onto the court. The duo were both five-star prospects, and sharing the floor has helped them make each other better.
Ed Daniels, a former Dynamic Prep assistant coach and current Cal Poly women’s basketball assistant coach, saw the dynamic develop firsthand.
“They’re a really good one-two punch,” Daniels said. “Austin, his maturity on the basketball court kind of allowed Marcus’s imagination and his athleticism to show a little bit more … They had great chemistry on the court.”
The established connection between the pair runs deep and goes beyond their single season as high school teammates at Dynamic Prep, because the duo also shares the same thought process when it comes to basketball.
“I’ve known (Spears Jr.) for a little while now,” Goosby said on Sept. 30. “I’ve loved playing against him just because he makes me a better player at the end of the day, but playing with him is probably my favorite thing … both our mindsets are really similar, so just great things come out of that whenever you have similar mindsets.”
While the two share similar mindsets, their personalities differ.
“Two different personalities; both are laid back,” Daniels said. “Austin is a little bit more reserved. Marcus is a young and bright personality, big personality when you get to know him.”
During their time at Dynamic Prep, Daniels mentioned how Goosby helped unlock more out of Spears Jr.’s game.
However, off the floor, Spears Jr. and his big personality helped Goosby to settle into the team a season ago.
“(In) the playoffs, you know if we won a game, we always would bring out the belt, you know, the BTA,” Daniels said. “One would run to the belt to bring it out, and Marcus finally (got) Austin to do it. It was a moment where … (it) showed (Austin) resting in, being comfortable with everybody and kind of showing his personality a little bit more and getting the belt and whooping the ground with it.”
