Kansas basketball: Making case for Morris, Timberlake, or Jackson to start

Kansas basketball: Making a case for Arterio Morris, Nick Timberlake, or Elmarko Jackson to start

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 06: Nicolas Timberlake #25 of the Towson Tigers dribbles up court during the CAA Men's Basketball Championship - semifinal game against the Charleston Cougars at the Entertainment & Sports Arena on March 6, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

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Nicolas Timberlake #25 of the Towson Tigers (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

Nick Timberlake

If there is one element of Timberlake’s game that the other two candidates cannot match, it is his consistent jump shot. Sinking 3-pointers is what has gotten Timberlake to the next level. Across five seasons at Towson, he averaged five 3-point attempts per game (6.7 in 2022-23) and hit them at a 37.9% clip (41.6% in 2022-23).

Rather than a guard who plays alongside Harris in a dual-point lineup, Timberlake can play off the ball and serve as an outside threat for the Jayhawks. Hunter Dickinson will draw plenty of double teams and, in turn, Kansas will need a player who can step outside and hit a trey ball. In cases like those, Timberlake is your guy.

Although his defense is not in the same class as Morris or Jackson, Timberlake will fill the concerning void of KU’s troublesome 3-point shooting. Today’s game has become reliant on threes, so Coach Self can surrender a few extra minutes per game to this outside sniper.

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