The Kansas Jayhawks are fully in rebuild mode. Losing the likes of, well, nearly everyone means that Bill Self’s 24th season will be largely impacted by who joins via the daunting NCAA Transfer Portal.
Self and his staff have had a few misses in the portal's infancy, but last year was filled with hits as guard Melvin Council Jr. and wing Tre White each had their own individual moments of brilliance.
Where do the Jayhawks have to look first?
When forward Flory Bidunga announced his entrance to the portal, he immediately jumped to the top of every respectable ranking. Bidunga was days off of an All-Big 12 season, which also saw him win the conference's player of the year when he announced his entrance to the portal.
Then, backup center Paul Mbiya announced he intended to enter the portal. And although no decision on his landing spot has since been made, there is no time to waste, and on Tuesday, the Jayhawks hosted 7-foot-2 center Anton Bonke.
Charlotte transfer Anton Bonke is visiting Kansas today and Michigan State on Friday, his agent Scott Nichols of @Rize_Management told ESPN. Will then visit Cincinnati, NC State, South Carolina and Clemson. Bonke is also considering Arkansas, TCU, USC and Gonzaga. 7-2 center… pic.twitter.com/WxHkWE2rDR
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) April 15, 2026
What does Bonke offer the Jayhawks?
Adding someone of the stature of Bonke opens up a ton of possibilities, both good and bad. While you are likely not going to be able to replicate Bidunga’s defensive impact entirely, there are things that you can take from one player to another. If Bonke can manage not getting into foul trouble like Bidunga did superbly for most of his season, then he may be a huge defensive help.
However, Bonke likely does not move anywhere near as sharply as Bidunga, meaning he will be more of a post presence on the defensive end, opening himself up to foul trouble.
The elephant in the room is worth mentioning in that upgrading from the American Conference to the Big 12 is a tall task, and while Bonke showed strong scoring at points with three 20+ point games, including a season-high of 25 against Temple, it goes without saying that he will struggle to be Kansas’ top offensive option next season without big improvements.
Bonke is currently rated by 247Sports as the nation's 137th-best transfer prospect, and 17th overall center
Bonke is one of many transfers that the Jayhawks are hosting, meaning. On Wednesday, it was reported that Utah transfer guard Terrence Brown is set for a visit.
As of publishing, the Jayhawks have yet to land anyone in the portal; however, there is still ample time for Self and co. to make the needed moves in order to improve from last season’s second-round exit of the NCAA Tournament.
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