Kansas basketball offers Johnny Furphy: KU’s final roster piece?

Kansas basketball could bring in Australian prospect Johnny Furphy as a corresponding move to Marcus Adams Jr.’s departure.

In yet another Kansas Jayhawks offseason shocker, 4-star forward Marcus Adams Jr. requested a release from his National Letter of Intent yesterday. The California native had been signed to Kansas for the better part of three months but decided he wanted to go in a different direction.

Surely, the coaching staff has been scrambling to resolve their lack of depth. With Adams leaving the program, Kansas basketball has just nine scholarship players expected to join the team if they do not pull Zach Clemence’s redshirt. There had been prior speculation that the Jayhawks would attempt to add another piece to the roster, but it has become a must.

The move might have come as a surprise to Jayhawk fans, but KU’s interest in an international prospect signals that this might have been a long time coming. Bill Self extended an offer to Johnny Furphy on July 11 following his strong showing at the NBA Academy Games.

Furphy, a Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence (CoE) athlete, has received increased interest from several premier programs lately. He put himself on the map in an event that NBA players such as Josh Giddey and Bennedict Mathurin first received recognition in. He also received offers from Ole Miss, Providence, Marquette, and Charleston over the weekend. Recruiting sites have not provided him with a ranking yet.

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The 18-year-old, who stands at 6-foot-7, 180 lbs, is a versatile forward with tremendous athleticism. He’s listed as a member of the Class of 2024 but he reclassed from 2023 in hopes of improving his game. Now, KU is considering bringing him in right now as a replacement for Adams.

Although immediately going pro is often an option with overseas players, Furphy confirmed with Travis Branham of 247 Sports that he wants to play college ball. “It’s always been a big dream of mine to earn a scholarship and seeing Australian players do it. It has been a big goal of mine.”

Furphy could be an exciting addition to the 2023-24 Kansas basketball roster that already consists of veteran forwards such as Kevin McCullar and KJ Adams. If there is any head coach who could take his game to the next level, it would be none other than Hall of Famer Bill Self.

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