Kansas basketball transfer could miss beginning of season with foot injury

The Kansas basketball team is entering the 2024-25 campaign with one of the most complete rosters it has ever had under head coach Bill Self. Unlike last year's team, the second unit is deep and can hold its own. Meanwhile, the starting lineup features Wooden Award candidate Hunter Dickinson and several high-profile transfers.

While the Jayhawks still have a loaded squad, KU can't seem to catch a break with its guard room. Promising sophomore and former 5-star recruit Elmarko Jackson tore his patellar tendon at a youth camp in June, and Kansas added Mississippi State transfer Shakeel Moore as his presumed replacement. Ironically, he might not be ready for the start of the regular season, either, as he will be out for 6-8 weeks after breaking his foot during a pickup game.

Shakeel Moore could miss beginning of regular season with broken foot

A graduate transfer who started 22 games for the Bulldogs last year, Moore is expected to be a pivotal bench piece for Coach Self. Over his four-year collegiate career, he has averaged 8.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game on 42.4%/31.2%.70.7% shooting splits.

The season opener vs. Howard is in less than two months on Nov. 4, and it's safe to assume Moore will still be recovering from the injury by then. KU still has Dajuan Harris, Zeke Mayo, Rylan Griffen, Diggy Coit, and Jamari McDowell to hold it down in the backcourt.

If Moore is absent for an extended period of time, the addition of Coit could prove to be even more meaningful than expected. The score-first guard was a surprise transfer commitment last month from Northern Illinois. He averaged over 20 points per game in his junior season and will provide the Jayhawks instant offense in 2024-25.

While Moore will be missed on the court, it shouldn't affect Kansas too much early in the year. Hopefully, he will be back before the beginning of December to give the bench a boost.