Looking back at each Kansas basketball high school commit in the past five years

Kansas basketball Class of 2021 commits:

Zach Clemence: After spending two years with the program and winning a national championship as a freshman, Clemence decided to enter the transfer portal. He committed to UC Santa Barbara but backtracked months later, calling Bill Self asking for his roster spot back.

He is set to join this year’s team as a redshirt. Clemence will have two years of eligibility remaining after he sits out this season. Although he technically entered the transfer portal, he still showed some loyalty by returning to the program, something many kids nowadays wouldn’t do.

KJ Adams: KJ averaged just 1 point-per-game as a freshman, yet he stuck it out with Bill Self. It eventually paid off, as he started every game last year and will likely do the same this year.

He earned the trust of his head coach by playing hard defense and giving it his all whenever he entered the game as a freshman. Rather than transferring out of his difficult situation and finding immediate playing time, Adams stayed diligent in his craft to become a terrific player by his sophomore season.

Bobby Pettiford: The point guard who once drew comparisons to Frank Mason III had a tough time at Kansas. He suffered many injuries and struggled tremendously on the offensive end. He’ll look to rejuvenate his basketball career with the East Carolina Pirates, whom he transferred to this offseason.

Kyle Cuffe Jr.: Cuffe couldn’t catch a break during his time here. Constant injuries and a redshirt year prevented him from even scoring a single point as a Jayhawk. You could tell that he loved KU with all his heart, but he was never able to develop into the player he wanted to be.

Adrian Autry will look to bring out some of Cuffe’s talent at his new school, Syracuse. However, the fact that he already broke his right hand back in June won’t bode well for his playing time prospects.