Kansas basketball: Assessing Christian Braun’s role next season
Christian Braun went from a local three-star recruit to starting for Kansas basketball a few times last season. What will his role look like next year though?
Christian Braun was one of the most exciting freshmen to watch last season. He became a fan-favorite, and his future with Kansas basketball is extremely bright. With a talented recruiting class coming in though, plus the return of Jalen Wilson, where will Braun fit with next season’s Jayhawks?
Based on the fact that the Jayhawks are losing Isaiah Moss and Udoka Azubuike to graduation, and probably Devon Dotson to the draft, Kansas will be looking to fill three starting positions. As of now, it seems like Braun could have the inside track to starting if head coach Bill Self decides to play four around one.
The three ‘guaranteed’ starters next season are Marcus Garrett, Ochai Agbaji, and David McCormack. After that, the other two spots will likely be filled by Dajuan Harris, Bryce Thompson, Jalen Wilson, or Christian Braun. Silvio De Sousa could be in the running too depending on whether or not Self wants to play a two big lineup.
In the sense that Braun has the most experience playing college ball out of that group, he seems like the most probable candidate to start. Most Kansas basketball fans will likely agree too.
Despite being a freshman last season, Braun provided a much-needed spark for the team. He was accurate from behind the three-point line, knocking down about 44 percent of his shots from deep. His game against Kansas State in particular was phenomenal.
Braun torched the Wildcats, making six out of his ten three-point attempts and scoring a total of 20 points. Sadly, Braun’s incredible performance was overshadowed by the brawl that took place as soon as the game ended.
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Whether or not Braun ends up starting for the entire season remains to be seen, but he has the inside track to at least begin the season starting. If he can eliminate some of the freshman mistakes he made last season, he should have no problem holding the state role for the duration of the season.