Inside an unexpected hotbed for Kansas basketball recruiting

Nestled in the middle of Atlanta, a new pipeline for Kansas basketball recruiting has emerged.

No, it’s not a traditional prep school powerhouse like IMG Academy or Oak Hill.

Instead, it’s a league created only four years ago, known as Overtime Elite. The league has quickly become a hotbed of elite high school talent since OTE moved away from a “pro-only” model in 2022.

In fact, KU forwards Bryson Tiller and Samis Calderon and guard Kohl Rosario are often referred to as the “OTE Jayhawks,” as all three played in the Overtime Elite program.

The trio makes up 50% of KU basketball’s freshman class, alongside Kansas City native Corbin Allen, Paul Mbiya and projected No. 1 NBA Draft pick Darryn Peterson.

The first OTE player to commit to KU was Calderon last November, followed by Tiller a few days later. Rosario reclassified and joined Kansas in late June.

Kansas coach Bill Self praised Overtime Elite’s program after signing Calderon.

“The way they do it overseas with academies, with guys going to school where they can work out with a trainer eight hours a day if they choose to do so,” Self said. “They can live on their own, where they get the nutrition, get the strength training, get the individual skill development, get the competition, maybe even to the point where they are playing against professionals over there and still keep their amateur status.

“There’s a lot more positives in a lot of that stuff than the way we do it in America. That’s not knocking our system, but in high schools there isn’t the time nor the staff to do the things they can do at a place like OTE, where your whole deal the whole time you’re there is academics and it’s ball. Your whole day is based on that.”

The Jayhawks and nearby (to OTE) Georgia Bulldogs are the only schools to have three freshman players from the league.

To understand how the “OTE Jayhawks” came to fruition, The Star visited the facility earlier this month.

The Jayhawks are frequent visitors

It’s not exactly a surprise to anyone in the Overtime Elite facility that KU’s freshman class consists mainly of OTE players, as the Kansas coaching staff is a constant in the facility.

“We see them pretty heavily in the month of September,” head of player services and experience Mindy DeBruce told The Star. (She has no relation to the KU-donor DeBruce family.) “They can come once a week to a school from a legislative perspective. In the month of September, before their 20-hour weeks start, we get them every week.

“Then 20-hour weeks start, we may get them once a month. And then games start and we may get like once every other month. I mean they’re recruiting to the extent that the legislation allows.”

DeBruce noted to The Star that the Jayhawks are the most frequent visitors from the Big 12 conference. A big part of that is because of the personal relationship assistant coach Kurtis Townsend has built with DeBruce.

“This entire business is built on the human aspect and relationships,” she said. “He is one of the nicest humans on this planet. I like to treat them as such as well. He asks me about my kids and I follow up on his kids. I would say at this point it’s a friendship, whether I’m here or he’s there. He’s always going to be in my orbit.

“I hope they (KU coaches) felt a genuineness in our willingness to support players in a way that leaves them open to choice. I know that some prep atmospheres, they say, like, ‘You, should go here’ or ‘This is where we want to funnel you.’ That doesn’t exist here. You really have the opportunity to openly recruit any of our players and whatever they decide we are going to support.”

DeBruce worked closely with Calderon as he decided between Kansas, Auburn, Michigan and other schools. She advised him the same way for every school, but Kansas felt like home for the 6-8, 200-pound forward from Espirito Santo, Brazil.

“I think he really felt a genuineness from them,” DeBruce said. “There was something that felt like they were going to elevate his development from a league pathway perspective, but also care about him as a human.”

According to DeBruce, each player has a different set of needs when they arrive at OTE. Some, like Calderon, need guidance in the process of selecting schools, while others are looking for exposure.

Earlier in September, Overtime Elite hosted a combine with around 75 college coaches and 29 NBA teams in attendance. Self and a number of his staff members were among that group.

What’s the type of thing he’s hoping to see?

“Bill Self is hard-nosed, blue-collar basketball,” she said. “It’s like toughness, mental fortitude when they are pushing through and overall physicality — those type of things.”

Fittingly, another Overtime Elite player might join the Jayhawks soon.

Another KU basketball recruit at OTE?

Kansas coach Bill Self didn’t formally RSVP to attend Overtime Elite’s combine on Sept. 11, but instead surprised the staff with his appearance.

Self was there to see point guard Taylen Kinney.

The 6-foot-2, 175-pound high school senior recently set his commitment date for Sept. 28. He will pick between Kansas, Louisville, Arkansas, Kentucky and others.

If Kinney were to join the Jayhawks, he’d become the fourth player from the OTE program to pick Kansas in the last two years. An OTE staffer pointed out that if that happened, KU’s potential starting lineup in the 2026-27 season could have four players from the program.

Of course, there’s still a ways to go before that happens, though the Jayhawks are getting some extra help from a player currently on the roster.

“DP (Peterson) told me to come and hoop — 10 months and then get to the league,” Kinney told The Star. “I mean that’s what he’s going to do.”

Kinney’s goal is to be a one-and-done prospect. Self spoke with him after the combine. It was just a few weeks after Kinney visited Lawrence.

Self’s pitch to Kinney?

“He just told me that once DP leaves he wants me to step in and take that role,” Kinney said. “He wants it to be my team.”

And if that happens, the “OTE Jayhawks” will expand from a trio to a quartet.

This story was originally published September 18, 2025 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Inside an unexpected hotbed for Kansas basketball recruiting."

Shreyas Laddha

The Kansas City Star

Shreyas Laddha covers KU hoops and football for The Star. He’s a Georgia native and graduated from the University of Georgia.