4. Marcus Morris (Ranked No. 113 in Class of 2008)
Marcus Morris was as tough as anyone in the country, and he and his brother Markieff created an environment that won basketball games at an exceptional rate. Although he wasn’t a top-rated recruit, he sure played like one. He thrived in the Allen Fieldhouse atmosphere.
Morris played on multiple teams that were the best in the country. It’s a bummer that he was never fully capable of winning a title with Kansas basketball.
On top of his high level of play, he dealt with numerous amounts of off-court struggles during his time at Kansas. He wasn’t always in a suitable mental space, and if it wasn’t for Bill Self, it might have gotten the best of him. Self himself even said that the Morris twins drove him crazy, but he was the only one who would keep them calm (via The Athletic, subscription required).
Morris, like all players on this list, was a true leader. Self set great examples of developing young players into elite talent with Morris, especially Thomas Robinson, who also went on to do great things at the university.
He could also shoot the three-ball, which gave him the upper advantage of comparing him with the other bigs that came after his time at the cathedral of college hoops.
Kansas beat out Villanova in his recruitment. Morris was in a stacked KU class that included Tyshawn Taylor, Markieff, Mario Little, and Travis Releford, but he was arguably the best to come out of the Class of 2008.