Kansas basketball misses on one of the Jayhawks' top transfer portal targets
The Kansas basketball program quickly snagged two of the best guards in the transfer portal a few weeks ago, landing Riley Kugel and Zeke Mayo. Now that the NCAA Dead Period has come to a close, things will begin ramping up again, and more players will make decisions.
Yesterday, a report surfaced that one of the best shooters in the portal would meet with Kansas coaches and eventually visit campus. However, it seems that the plan has fallen through. According to The Athletic's Tobias Bass, former Wichita State Shocker Colby Rogers has committed to Penny Hardaway and the Memphis Tigers.
Rogers, who led WSU in scoring after sitting out one year due to NCAA rules, is one of the best outside shooters on the open market. He connected on 2.9 attempts from beyond the arc this past season at a 4.9% clip. Rogers also averaged 16.4 points and 3.4 rebounds in 34 games.
Kansas had been connected to Rogers since he entered the portal given his local ties. The Jayhawks have made it clear that they need shooters in the portal, and the Georgia native fit that bill, but he decided to go in a different direction.
The 6-foot-5 wing also spent time at Cal Poly and Siena before transferring to the Shockers. He has scored 1,441 total points in his collegiate career and is entering his final year of eligibility. Rogers would have been in consideration to make the starting five if he came to Lawrence.
Rogers hit 99 threes last year, good for 17th among all Division I players. He would have filled a desperate need for the Jayhawks. While it was disappointing to see the initial plans of him visiting KU collapse so quickly, there are still other guards in the transfer portal that Self and his staff are interested in. Keep an eye on Rylan Griffen and AJ Storr moving forward.