KU announces signing of big man Gethro Muscadin: ‘We could tell he felt at home’
Gethro Muscadin, a 6-foot-10 senior forward from Aspire Academy in Louisville, Kentucky, has signed his national letter of intent to play basketball at Kansas, KU coach Bill Self announced Thursday.
Muscadin, who is from Gonaives, Haiti, committed to KU on Oct. 17. He chose Kansas over Kansas State, Texas Tech, Louisville and Minnesota..
Muscadin, who started playing basketball when he was 15, arrived in the United States when he was 16. He played his sophomore and junior seasons at Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas, after spending his freshman year at Life Prep Academy in Wichita. Rivals.com’s No. 131-rated player in the Class of 2020 averaged 4.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots per game for Sunrise Christian.
“At 6-foot-10, this past summer Gethro showed everybody that he can shoot the basketball with range. He’s a runner. He’s a jumper. He’s a shot-blocker,” Self said. “His activity level is very high. We feel like he is a guy that could develop into one of the better big men in this class.”
“We all loved Gethro on his visit,” Self added. “Kurtis’ (Townsend) relationship with him and his family played a big role in him coming to Kansas. We could tell he felt at home and seemed so happy. His personality along with his talent will make him a fan favorite from day one at Kansas.”
Muscadin told The Star when he committed that it was basically a KU-Kansas State battle.
“It was those two schools,” Muscadin said. “It was a tough decision but I knew this was the best way. Kansas is where I wanted to go. It’s where my heart told me to go. I mean it’s the tradition, the relationship I have with the coaches. I feel Kansas is the best spot for me to reach my goals the next few years.”
Muscadin’s high school coach, Jeremy Kipness noted to The Star: “His ultimate goal of playing in the NBA weighed heavily in his decision. They’ve done a great job developing players. They play for a national championship every year.”
Muscadin told The Star he hopes to play in college at least two years.
“I love it there, the coaches and players. They have experience coaching guys like me,” Muscadin said. “It is where you want to go knowing they (coaches) know you and players like you.”
His high school coach says the tools are there to play basketball professionally someday.
“He is a modern day big. He can play the 5, the 4. At the end of the day, he is positionless,” Kipness said. “He is able to impact the game in different ways. He is an elite level rebounder. He rebounds outside his area and finishes the play as well. That is a huge thing. He’s able to stretch the floor, pick and pop, keep the defense honest with his perimeter shot.
“He’s able to protect the rim and block shots and will do that more and more as he develops. He’s just scratched the surface. The good news is he’s a coach’s dream, willing to soak up knowledge.”
Muscadin is KU’s third signee during the week-long early signing period which runs until Wednesday. KU has signed wing Tyon Grant-Foster of Indian Hills CC and Bryce Thompson, a guard from Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa.
KU on Wednesday offered a scholarship to Latrell Jossell, a guard from Central High in Keller, Texas. The unranked player told The Star he believes he will sign in the early period. He has reported offers from KU and Dallas Baptist thus far in recruiting.
KU currently has 12 players on scholarship, one under the NCAA limit of 13. The Jayhawks will lose scholarship seniors Udoka Azubuike and Isaiah Moss. Meanwhile, non-seniors Silvio De Sousa, Devon Dotson, Ochai Agbaji and David McCormack all could conceivably turn pro. Losing others to the pros or transfer is always a possibility.
This story was originally published November 14, 2019 at 11:39 AM with the headline "KU announces signing of big man Gethro Muscadin: ‘We could tell he felt at home’."
