Grad transfer Jordan Bruner, a senior-to-be at Yale, has KU on his list of schools
The cancellation of the NCAA Tournament has led to an early start to the reshaping of college basketball rosters all across the land.
Grad transfers and underclassmen in search of a new situation have started to fill the NCAA transfer portal. Also, underclassmen such as Georgia’s Anthony Edwards, Auburn’s Isaac Okoro and Seton Hall’s Sandro Mamukelashvili on Friday tossed their names in the 2020 NBA Draft pool, perhaps starting the annual flood of early entries electing to leave school or at least test the draft waters.
Kansas, which currently is one over the NCAA scholarship limit of 13 players for the 2020-21 season, figures to drop to 13 scholarships if, as expected, sophomore Devon Dotson leaves for the draft. With other departures of non-seniors possible, KU has been mentioned as a potential landing spot for various players.
Yale’s Jordan Bruner, a 6-9, 205-pound senior-to-be forward out of Spring Valley High in Columbia, South Carolina, tells Rivals.com he has heard from 40 to 50 schools including KU, Duke, Baylor, Maryland, Xavier, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida State.
Bruner — he averaged 10.9 points and 9.2 rebounds a game his junior year at Yale — as a grad transfer will be immediately eligible next season. He hit 112 of 253 shots his junior year for 44.3%. He made 32 of 99 threes for 32.3% and was a 76.6% free-throw shooter.
“Bruner has continued to debate whether to enter the NBA Draft, but the impact of the coronavirus on the draft process could force his hand to the point that he chooses one more year on the college hardwood.” writes Corey Evans of Rivals.com. “This past season was his best, as he nearly averaged a double-double while also showing the ability to extend the defense with the perimeter jumper.”
KU’s interest in frontcourt player Bruner, who was an unranked high school player in the recruiting Class of 2016 by Rivals.com, might be tied to whether or not forward Silvio De Sousa turns pro or returns to KU for a senior season. To this point, there’s been no speculation that sophomore forward David McCormack would turn pro, considering he figures to replace Udoka Azubuike and take over all those minutes at the 5-spot.
“I think I’m very much capable of playing pro, but with the situation with the virus and everything going on, I think everybody is pretty unsure of what’s going to happen in the coming months and over the course of next year,” Bruner told 247Sports.com. “I’d like to keep my options open and hear what NBA scouts and other people think I’m capable of and what they think about me. I don’t want to get stuck in a place where I can’t play in college if I want to.”
“I’m sure that I’ll hear from a number of schools now that my name is in the portal,” Bruner added. “Whoever wants me it will definitely be based on the need for me and the fit, where I can go and where I can showcase what I can do. Ultimately, the goal is to play as a professional athlete.”
KU also reportedly has shown some interest in Harvard forward Seth Towns, a 6-7, 215-pound senior-to-be from Columbus, Ohio, who reportedly has narrowed his list to Duke and Ohio State, according to 247sports.com.
Towns, an unranked player in the recruiting Class of 2016 by Rivals.com, reportedly had Kansas on his initial list of transfer destinations, plus Maryland, Michigan, Syracuse and Virginia.
Towns sat out the entire 2019-20 season because of a knee injury that required surgery.
KU has reportedly expressed interest in another Harvard grad transfer. He’s Bryce Aiken, a 6-foot point guard originally out of St. Patrick High in Elizabeth, New Jersey
Aiken, who averaged 16.7 points a game in seven games his senior season before suffering a foot injury that made him a medical redshirt, reportedly has heard from KU, Maryland, Marquette, Seton Hall, Michigan, Iowa State, and Gonzaga.
“There are no shortage of suitors for him, including Iowa State, Marquette, Maryland, Michigan and Seton Hall,” Corey Evans of Rivals.com writes of Aiken.
KU is expected to be a longshot, considering the Jayhawks have several perimeter players who figure to return for the 2020-21 season.
“Expect his list to expand. He is a player who would be given the ball from day one for whichever program he chooses,” Evans writes.
Aiken was ranked No. 102 in the recruiting Class of 2016 by Rivals.com.
“I’ve spoken to Juwan Howard over at Michigan, the head coach of Iowa State; Kansas has reached out, but not to me personally, yet. And Gonzaga,” Aiken told 247sports.com.
Donovan Williams, a 6-5 senior shooting guard from North Star High School in Lincoln, Nebraska has a final list of KU, Oklahoma State, Villanova, Texas, Texas A&M and Kansas State, he reported on Twitter.
He made an unofficial visit to Kansas for the Jayhawks’ Senior Night victory over TCU. He has not yet received a scholarship offer from KU.
“I got to go into the locker room during my last visit and I was able to meet the players and talk to the staff, which was fun,” Williams told Jayhawkslant.com. “The same stuff stood out as before (on a previous unofficial visit). How good of a team they are and how well coached they are. The experience was awesome.
“It would mean a lot to get an offer from a school like Kansas. I’ve worked since I was a kid to get an offer from a blueblood. But, at the same time, I will not remove any focus or anything on my other schools.
“Kansas just really has the resume and tradition that I can see myself being apart of and becoming a pro. Coach (Bill) Self is one of the best to ever do it and has shown me that he can take a kid to wherever they wanna go. Also, I love Allen, the environment and fan support is crazy.”
J.T. Thor, a 6-8 forward from Norcross (Georgia) High School, who once had KU on his list, has narrowed his choices to Auburn, Oklahoma State and UCLA, he reported on Twitter. He is ranked No. 56 in the recruiting class of 2020 by Rivals.com.
“It’s pretty much one of those three schools or a situation where he goes back to (Class of) 2021 and then goes prep to pros,” Thor’s brother, Jal Thor, told Zagsblog.com. “We are balancing options now to wait it all out and should come to a final answer sometime in early May.”
Skyy Clark, a 6-1 sophomore point guard from Heritage Christian School in Los Angeles, has KU and Kentucky on his list, as well as UCLA, Michigan, Memphis and others. He is pondering a move to the Class of 2021, Kentucky.com reports. Clark is the 17th-rated player in the Class of 2022 by Rivals.com.
This story was originally published March 21, 2020 at 10:13 AM with the headline "Grad transfer Jordan Bruner, a senior-to-be at Yale, has KU on his list of schools."
