With Flory Bidunga, KU basketball lands highest-ranked commitment since Josh Jackson
By landing a surprise commitment from five-star prospect Flory Bidunga Saturday night, the Kansas Jayhawks added their highest-ranked commitment since five-star forward Josh Jackson in the 2016 class.
In fact, Bidunga is the Jayhawks’ first top-5 commitment since 2016, and he will be the sixth top-5 player landed in the Bill Self era when he signs and makes it to campus ahead of the 2024-25 season.
Bidunga is ranked No. 4 in the recruiting class of 2024 by ESPN.com and No. 5 by both Rivals.com and 247Sports.com.
Jackson was ranked a bit higher — No. 1 by Rivals.com and 247Sports.com in the class of 2016, and No. 2 by ESPN.
Jackson played only one season with the Jayhawks, averaging 16.3 points and 7.4 rebounds a game during the 2016-17 season. The Phoenix Suns chose Jackson as the No. 4 pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.
Landing five-star prospects hasn’t exactly been uncommon under Self. In fact, he has an illustrious list of five-star recruits in his tenure at KU.
Here’s the full list according to Rivals.com
2003
- David Padgett — No. 7
- J.R. Giddens — No. 19
Rodrick Stewert — No. 25
2004
- Russell Robinson — No. 27
2005
- Julian Wright — No. 8
- Mario Chalmers — No. 12
Brandon Rush — No. 13
2006
Darrell Arthur — No. 16
- Sherron Collins — No. 21
2009
- Xavier Henry — No. 8
- Elijah Johnson — No. 24
2010
- Josh Selby — No. 1
2012
- Perry Ellis — No. 12
2013
- Andrew Wiggins — No. 1
- Wayne Selden — No. 12
Joel Embiid — No. 25
2014
Cliff Alexander — No. 4
- Kelly Oubre — No. 6
- Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk — Rivals lists as a five-star prospect; no number-ranking given
2015
- Cheick Diallo — No. 5
- Carlton Bragg — No. 21
2016
- Josh Jackson — No. 1
2017
- Billy Preston — No. 11
- Silvio De Sousa — Rivals lists as a five-star prospect; no number-ranking given
2018
Quentin Grimes — No. 8
- Devon Dotson — No. 20
2020
- Bryce Thompson — No. 21
2022
- Gradey Dick — No. 28
- M.J. Rice — No. 29
2024
- Flory Bidunga — No. 5
This story was originally published August 13, 2023 at 6:30 AM with the headline "With Flory Bidunga, KU basketball lands highest-ranked commitment since Josh Jackson."
