An early look at KU Jayhawks men’s basketball roster for 2021-22 as offseason begins
Kansas’ men’s basketball team faces a bunch of unknowns as Bill Self’s Jayhawks enter the offseason.
The biggest question, of course, in the aftermath of Monday’s 85-51 loss to USC in a second-round NCAA Tournament West Regional game in Indianapolis, is what will happen regarding the NCAA’s infractions case alleging five Level I violations.
There’s a chance the IARP — the independent committee deciding the case — could deem the Jayhawks guilty of wrongdoing and assess a penalty that includes a postseason ban in 2021-22 and/or beyond.
There’s also a chance no penalty will be assessed in response to KU’s presentation to the group that will address the charges.
In addition, there’s a chance if the verdict is not to Self’s satisfaction, the 18th-year KU coach could file a lawsuit against the NCAA that conceivably could take a long time to resolve in the court system.
What is known for sure is there will be no appeal of the decision by the NCAA’s independent group. All decisions by members of that panel are final.
Only time will tell if the NCAA decision — which some have speculated could come before the start of the 2021-22 season — has an effect on the roster.
The Jayhawks, as it stands today, have signed two players and received one non-binding commitment, filling all 13 available scholarship slots for the 2021-22 season.
KU has signed high school frontcourt players Zach Clemence and K.J. Adams and received a commitment from junior college power forward Sydney Curry.
Clemence, a 6-10, 215-pound senior forward from Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas, is ranked No. 35 in the recruiting Class of 2021 by Rivals.com.
Adams, a 6-foot-7, 220-pound senior power forward from Westlake High School in Austin, Texas, is ranked No. 73 in the class by Rivals.com.
Curry is a 6-8, 265-pound sophomore power forward from John Logan Community College in Carterville, Illinois.
KU according to various recruiting services, remains active on the recruiting trail.
Bobby Pettiford, a 6-foot-0, 170-pound senior point guard from South Granville High School in Creedmoor, North Carolina who withdrew his commitment to Louisville this month, talked to KU’s coaches this week. He is ranked No. 115 in the recruiting Class of 2021 according to Rivals.com, No. 95 by ESPN.com and No. 82 by SI.com.
KU is also recruiting TyTy Washington, a 6-4, 180-pound senior point guard from Compass Prep School in Chandler, Arizona.
Washington, who withdrew his commitment to Creighton on March 11, is ranked No. 32 in the recruiting Class of 2021 by Rivals.com. He’s considering KU, Washington Arizona, Illinois, LSU, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Texas Tech, UCLA, Kentucky, Arizona State, Duke, Dayton, DePaul, Texas A&M, Pitt and others.
KU on Wednesday offered a scholarship to 6-3 KC Roos graduate transfer point guard Brandon McKissic, who also is being recruited by Missouri, Kansas State, Saint Louis and others. McKissic wrote on Twitter on Thursday that he received a scholarship offer from MU coach Cuonzo Martin.
Kansas also has offered a scholarship to Tyson Walker, a 6-foot sophomore point guard from Northeastern University, who has a final six of Kansas, Maryland, Michigan State, Texas, Vanderbilt and Miami (Florida).
Spots on KU’s roster could open via non-seniors turning pro or transferring.
Senior forward Mitch Lightfoot has said he will take advantage of an NCAA rule allowing seniors to return another season. His scholarship will not count against the limit of 13. Walk-on Chris Teahan also said he will return to KU for a fifth season.
Senior point guard Marcus Garrett has not announced whether he will return to KU or begin his pro career. It’s been long assumed that, as a possible second-round NBA Draft choice, he likely would not return to college.
“If this is his last game, I know he’s got some decisions to make — a decision to make — I’m really proud to have been his coach,” Self said after Monday’s loss to USC ended KU’s season at 21-9.
“Certainly I totally appreciate his abilities, what he gets out of himself each and every day. Jayhawk fans should be very proud of him, as well.”
Dajuan Harris, who played backup point guard his freshman season, and fellow freshman combo guard Bryce Thompson figure to return. Latrell Jossell, who played very little his freshman season, also is a point guard eligible to return.
There’s a chance wing Ochai Agbaji and power forward David McCormack could test the NBA waters after three seasons at KU.
Other non-seniors eligible to return are starting wings Christian Braun and Jalen Wilson as well as reserve wings Tristan Enaruna and Tyon Grant-Foster.
Very few interviews with non starters have been conducted this season because of COVID-19 protocols, thus it’s not known if Enaruna and Grant-Foster are happy at KU or considering possibly moving on after receiving limited playing time. Enaruna is a highly regarded player in his home country of Netherlands; Grant-Foster was a standout juco player in 2019-20.
Freshman center Gethro Muscadin, a 6-10 native of Haiti, received almost no playing time his initial season at Kansas. Walk-on guard Michael Jankovich is expected to return to KU for his junior season.
Self was asked after Monday’s loss if anything could be done in the future to combat playing against teams like USC — ones with great length.
“Yeah you can recruit. You can address it through recruiting. You can address it through player development,” Self said. “For us to be a team that really has a chance to be a national contender, I mean, we need to get a little bit more athletic. We need to get a little longer and bigger, those sorts of things. But I thought our guys for the most part played pretty well and maximized their individual abilities pretty well this year. But tonight, the length definitely mattered.”
This story was originally published March 23, 2021 at 11:55 AM with the headline "An early look at KU Jayhawks men’s basketball roster for 2021-22 as offseason begins."
