Kansas basketball: Did Bill Self drop subtle hint on future of KU’s 2024 recruiting class?

The press release Bill Self and Kansas basketball released yesterday could suggest the Jayhawks aren’t done on the recruiting trail.

The Kansas basketball program signed each of its three verbal commits on National Signing Day across Wednesday and Thursday. Flory Bidunga, Labaron Philon, and Rakease Passmore are set to join the Jayhawks in the spring as they have signed binding agreements that they’ll be attending the University of Kansas.

KU’s three-man class ranks No. 4 in the nation through the first national signing stage. However, recent comments from head coach Bill Self could imply another player could commit to Kansas basketball during this period. Here is what he had to say about Bidunga, the top-10-rated center out of Kokomo, Indiana:

“Flory is the headliner of our recruiting class thus far. He rated by many to be one of the top players in this year’s recruiting class. Flory is an elite athlete. He can play above the rim. He changes ends as well as anybody. He’s getting stronger and developing more offensive skills. He is probably as good a prospect that we’ve had inside in quite some time. Coach (Jeremy) Case did a great job with recruiting Flory and his family.”

He notes that he’s the headliner ‘thus far,’ meaning there is still a possibility a new commit could be the star of KU’s class. There are only four players ranked ahead of Bidunga in 2024 — Dylan Harper, Tre Johnson, VJ Edgecombe, and Jayden Quaintance. They’ve been connected to three of those four, but the Jayhawks are out of the race for Johnson and Harper.

Who could Self be going after? The Jayhawks already have a point guard, a wing, and a center signed. Perhaps an outside shooter or another big if they’re gearing for Hunter Dickinson to depart for the NBA, but it’s relatively late in the process to start targeting new recruits.

While this is merely speculation, it is interesting to see Self keeping his options open considering many thought the 2024 class to be complete.