Kansas basketball: Marcus Garrett going to be the man this season

Kansas basketball’s Marcus Garrett has been named to the Big 12’s Preseason All-Conference team and it’s exciting to think what he’ll be capable of this year.

Marcus Garrett isn’t like the past few point guards Kansas basketball has had. Devon Dotson, Devonte’ Graham, and Frank Mason are all thought of as elite scorers, which is not the case for Garrett, who’s the only Jayhawk that made the Big 12’s Preseason All-Conference team.

Others that made the team include Baylor’s Jared Butler, Oklahoma’s Austin Reaves, Oklahoma State’s, Cade Cunningham, Texas’ Matt Coleman III, and West Virginia’s Oscar Tshiebwe. Butler was picked as the preseason Big 12 Player of the Year.

Garrett is known for his lockdown defense, winning the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award as well as the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Award last season. Now that he’s back for his senior season, it’s time for Garrett to put it all together and average over 13 points per game.

Last season, he put up 9.2 points per game on 44.2 percent shooting while also leading the Jayhawks in assists with 4.6 per game. While improving his shooting percentage is a must, the fact that Garrett led the team in assists is quite impressive considering he was in more of a shooting guard role. When it comes to raising his shooting percentage, Garrett will need to be better when it comes to finishing at the rim.

Assuming Garrett can continue to lead the team assists, defense, and raise his scoring, there may be no player in the conference that has more utility. He has all the tools in the world to be an All-American this season, and it’s exciting to think about how far he can lead the Jayhawks along with fellow upperclassmen David McCormack, Ochai Agbaji, and Mitch Lightfoot.