Kansas Jayhawks Q&A: Dajuan Harris the X-factor, MJ Rice and KU football hype
41.1%.
That’s the percentage Kansas guard Dajuan Harris is shooting from three-point land this season.
The volume is relatively low (two three-point attempts a game), but not even the most optimistic Jayhawk fan could have seen Harris shooting this well.
The junior guard is averaging 8.2 points, 6.3 assists and 2.5 rebounds this season — all career highs. Harris has been trending up on offense lately, averaging 11.6 points while shooting 50.1% FG in his last five games.
It’s not exactly a bold proclamation with three regular season games left, but I believe Harris is KU’s X-factor.
Kansas coach Bill Self and his teammates have urged Harris to be non-hesitant and shoot the ball all season. Lately, the message has gotten through to Harris.
He’s averaging 10.2 shots per game in KU’s five-game winning streak, compared to 6.5 shots in the first 23 games.
Whenever Harris is aggressive and hunting for his shot, defenders treat him like an offensive threat and don’t sag off him. His attacking mindset helps space the floor better for Kansas, improves KU’s shot quality and puts opposing bigs in foul trouble.
It also alleviates the scoring load on Jayhawk stars Jalen Wilson and Gradey Dick.
Two pretty telling statistics:
- Kansas is 20-0 in Harris’ career when he scores double-digit points.
- Harris has five or less shot attempts in four of KU’s five losses this season.
Harris’ aggressiveness is the key to unlocking the ceiling of Kansas’ offense and a deep run in March Madness, which favors strong guard play.
Anyway, it’s time for another Kansas Jayhawks Q&A. Some questions are from the KU Sports Twitter Spaces I host every Wednesday at 7 p.m. As always, thank you for all the questions!
What’s been your biggest surprise that you didn’t expect coming into the beat? — @JayhawakTalk (via Twitter Spaces)
Honestly, how much people are excited about KU football.
There is a real appetite for Kansas football coverage, especially for a program on the rise. I saw it firsthand in Memphis for the Liberty Bowl; people wore KU gear everywhere I turned.
I only realized how big of a deal football was once I covered that bowl game. Kansas fans are ready for a consistent Kansas football team that makes bowl games. The day the Jayhawks make the College Football Playoff, I shudder for the rest of the Big 12.
What are your thoughts on Kansas taking it easy for the Big 12 tournament with KU dealing with injuries? — @ELindison (via Twitter Spaces)
I’m a big believer in peaking at the right time in basketball.
The idea of not necessarily playing your best basketball late and then expecting to play your best when it matters only happens a little in pro sports and basically never in college sports.
Kansas needs to build continuity and try its hardest in the Big 12 tournament to continue building on what works and fix any bad habits.
More evidence, the last two times Kansas won the Big 12 tournament: 2018 (Final Four) and 2022 (national title year).
Plus, saying the Big 12 tournament isn’t important seems like tempting faith.
What’s up with MJ Rice? Is he still injured or something else? — @Mr_Darnell92 (via Twitter Spaces)
Unfortunately, Rice is just not ready to have a consistent rotation spot.
That started because of all the injury issues (kidney stones, back spasms and more); he hasn’t been able to practice as much as he needs.
It’s translated to an on-court performance that indicates he isn’t ready and naturally, it’s probably affected his confidence, at least some.
When you factor all of that in — I don’t think he plays much of a role the rest of the season. Plus, the team is rolling, so there’s little reason to break up something that’s working.
That is a great question. I think Self, at the very least, has another three years left. He is 60, and plenty of coaches have gone way longer, even though Self once stated that he didn’t think he’d coach too far past this point.
Bob Huggins will turn 70 this year. Jim Boeheim, 78, is approaching 80. Self seems to be enjoying it and he’s still having success — and is plenty competitive.
Right now, Self is No. 14 in D-I coaching wins (782), so I wouldn’t be surprised if he wants to eventually finish top-10. That could be motivation to stick around.
I don’t know where KU goes to find his potential replacement. It depends on the program’s state and how good the external candidates are there. Still, Kansas has had eight coaches in its entire history and money isn’t really an issue, so whoever KU wants it will get.
I could see KU turning to an internal candidate if there wasn’t a home run hire outside the program, but it’s impossible to predict who those candidates will be until you know the timeline.
What’s been your impression of the KU athletic department? — @JayhawkTalk (via Twitter Spaces)
They’ve been great to work with so far to set up interviews and ask for clarification on any questions I have had.
KU AD Travis Goff also hopped on our weekly Twitter Spaces to talk about the pending David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium renovations and even Allen Fieldhouse, so no complaints on that end.
This story was originally published February 24, 2023 at 11:25 AM with the headline "Kansas Jayhawks Q&A: Dajuan Harris the X-factor, MJ Rice and KU football hype."
