Heading into his first season at the helm for the Texas A&M men’s basketball program, head coach Bucky McMillan previewed the season ahead in his first appearance at the Dallas A&M Club for Coach’s Night on Wednesday.
McMillan was hired as the Aggies’ new head coach on April 4 on a five-year deal worth $16 million. Before he arrived in Bryan-College Station, Texas, he led the Samford Bulldogs to the school’s first NCAA Tournament since 2000, while also racking up three Southern Conference Coach of the Year awards during his tenure.
The opportunity to coach at the highest level against the best competition is something that every coach clamors for, and that is exactly what McMillan will be granted when he steps on the court for the first Southeastern Conference matchup in January.
Here is everything McMillan had to say when discussing the upcoming season and his experiences so far in Aggieland.
How has it been having the opportunity to visit with the Dallas Aggies Club and the Texas A&M community across the state of Texas?
“It’s great. You can feel the passion from all of these fans and it’s great, the people in College Station and now here in Dallas, and all across all the Aggies have such passion,” McMillan said.
How is McMillan’s relationship with Texas A&M’s head football coach Mike Elko?
“(Mike Elko) has been great, showing me the ropes since I’ve been here. I’m a football fan. I’m a big, big football fan, so I appreciate you, Coach,” McMillan said.
What is the importance of adding Spanish guard Rubén Domínguez and what does he bring to the table?
“What he brings is three-point shooting from the time he steps on the floor,” McMillan said. “He can shoot it from half-court, he’s one of the best shooters in the world. What’s going on with international game right now, with the way college basketball is with NIL (name, image and likeness) opportunties, is that a lot of the players that would have played professionally overseas are now coming acorss the pond. We want the good ones who can make threes to come to Texas A&M. He’s one of those guys.”
How plug-and-play ready is Domínguez going from playing overseas to the SEC?
“He’s played against elite competition, professional basketball. He knows how to play, (which) I think is just as important as his skill set,” McMillan said. “When you get to this level, a lot of it is your mental ability to process things quickly. If you played professionally, you’re able to process faster. That’s what he brings. He’ll probably have an adjustment to make with the physicallity and the defense that’s in the SEC, but I like what he’s about and I like his skill set.”
How have summer workouts progressed for the Aggies?
“We just want to get better. We got a lot of guys out. We got three that won’t be here until later in the summer, so we don’t have 10 yet. We’re not playing a lot of five-on-five,” McMillan said. “We’re just trying to get the players acclamated to our pace of play and the skill set it takes to play at that pace and the volume of three-point shooting is obviously something we’ve been working on to make sure our guys understand how we like to space the floor and the skillset neccessary to be able to do that.
How does the House settlement impact college hoops?
“Across college basketball and football, this may be the highest group of athletes in terms of their financial compensation that will ever happen,” McMillan said. “The House settlement hasn’t come into play yet, NIL opportunties (and) collective opportunties. I think it may come down to earth a little bit next year, but it’ll be across the SEC with that $2.73 (million).”
How much more comfortable are you now, compared to when you first got hired?
“It’s a lot more relaxing becuase you actually get to work with players. If you can’t work, it’s hard to have confidence in the group you have. Now, we’re finally getting players there so we can work and build the confidence within the team we’re going to need to have to play in the best college basketball league in the country,” McMillan said.
What does it mean to be able to visit with Aggie fans and see the support from the Maroon and White faithful?
“This is incredible. This is the value of athletics, when you think about it. There are not a lot of opportunties and things in life that can tie this many people together,” McMillan said. “It’s phenomenal because we have something that links us together. We’re all Aggies here, and we get to support each other.”
What are the goals heading into the 2025-2026 campaign?
“I expect to win every game that we’re going to play. That’s the pressure we put on ourselves,” McMillan said.
What does the future of the program look like moving forward?
“There is no reason that A&M can’t compete at the highest of the high level with all of the resources that the Aggies have provided,” McMillan said.
How will this team handle potential obstacles and challenges ahead during this year’s campaign?
“We want adversity. We want that. When there is true adversity and things aren’t going exactly how we want it to go, that’s an opportunity for all these Aggies to come together and do something incredible,” McMillan said.
How did it feel coming to Texas A&M and what’s the experience in College Station been like so far?
“Trev Alberts, who is not here tonight, I have to thank him for this great opportunity to be your basketball coach,” McMillan said. “Everything has been great since we’ve been here. I have loved College Station. It has been phenomenal. I certainly feel the passion for the fans.”
What can fans expect from “Bucky Ball”?
“My job is to bring you a product and a program that you all can be so proud of because they play so hard, so unselfish and have such a swagger when they step on that floor,” McMillan said. “We want to play a style of basketball that’s successful and that you enjoy watching. We want to bring both to you: We want to bring a winning culture that you all deserve, and we want to have an entertaining style that you can all enjoy.”
What kind of aspects will this program be built on moving forward?
“Our basketball program is pretty much built on this: We’ve got to get great personnel. We’ve got to get great recruits. We’ve got to get great coaches, and we’ve got to get great supporters. No one is going to outdo the support of the Aggies. That much I know.”
What is the focus of this team and what are the expectations heading into this year?
“We try to narrow the focus to a driver, a pitching wedge and a putter. That’s our plan. We’re going to keep it simple analytically, and hopefully, we can be one of the highest scoring teams in the country this year,” McMillan said. “We take free-throws, layups and threes, and we get really good at it.”
How has the recruiting process been at Texas A&M this offseason?
“There are not too many places that you could be, that at that time of year, that you could have that kind of support,” McMillan said. “We brought 12 players on recruiting visits, and all 12 committed. That says a lot about Texas A&M.”
What is the vision for the program’s future?
“I do think that this place is destined to compete for championships. I want to do that here. We will compete for championships when we don’t focus so much on what we’re going to do and instead focus on how we’re going to do it,” McMillan said. “I’m looking forward to building something truly special here with everyone here.”
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