Despite Johnny Furphy only spending one season in Lawrence with the Jayhawks, the young Australian was instantly a fan favorite. Whether it was his beautiful head of hair, incredible athleticism, or simply the fact that he was one of the few bright spots for KU that year, fans were sad to see him declare for the NBA draft. For the 2nd year in a row though, he is now balling out in Summer League.
Last year, Furphy showed nice flashes in summer league, before ultimately being buried behind a deep Indiana Pacers wing room. Now entering his 2nd year in the league, the 6’9” wing is making his case for more minutes with Indy, most notably by showcasing some extremely powerful dunks, most recently a poster dunk on Monday night in the Indiana-Chicago game:
Johnny Furphy just threw down one of the best dunks in NBA Summer League history 😳 pic.twitter.com/EK5xT2xrel
— Jayhawks In The NBA (@NBA_Jayhawks) July 14, 2025
Holy. Moly. What a dunk! The 20-year-old looks as athletic as ever and is starting to truly fill into his frame. Not only was his poster on Noe Essengue, a player just taken 12th overall in the 2025 NBA draft, but it was one of the best dunks fans have witnessed in summer league in a long time.
Furphy is certainly still working on his deep shot, but if he continues to dunk the ball like he has so far in summer league, he could find his place in the NBA thanks to his slashing and finishing ability alone.
Do Furphy’s summer league highs set him up for more minutes this year?
Last season, Furphy appeared in 50 NBA games, but totaled just 379 minutes on the court (7.6 minutes per game). Of those 50 games, the former Jayhawk only saw double-digit minutes in 11 of them. This year could be different however! Coach Rick Carlisle seemed to make it a point of emphasis to at least get Furphy on the court in the playoffs for a few minutes here and there.
This is a great sign as to how Carlisle views the Australian. Additionally, due to the unfortunate Tyrese Haliburton injury along with the departure of Myles Turner, the Pacers may elect to lean on different looks that slide players around and allow Furphy to see the court for longer stretches. In what feels like a reset year for Indiana, they may have found another secret gem.
Prior to Monday night, Furphy had recorded nice outputs in summer league of 8 points (on 3-4 shooting) in 9 minutes against the Cleveland Cavaliers and 11 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and a steal against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Then there was Monday night, where he added 15 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks, and 2 steals, stuffing the statsheet.
His well-rounded game was impressive, showing Indiana’s coaching staff just how versatile he can be. Then he added that phenomenal dunk on Essengue and at this point it's tough to see a route where Indiana doesn’t give the former Jayhawk a longer leash this upcoming season. Furphy certainly deserves it. Once a Jayhawk, Always a Jayhawk!