Kansas basketball: Jayhawks recruiting highly touted 7-foot center Xavion Staton

Over the past few months, the recruitment of Xavion Staton has blown up. The Sierra Vista (Las Vegas, Nevada) center is looking to schedule a visit to Lawrence and has picked up nearly 30 offers since March, according to On3's Jamie Shaw.

Staton is unlike any big man Bill Self has ever coached at Kansas. At 7-foot, 190 pounds, he is a menacing presence in the paint and can meet anybody at the rim. He is agile and moves well but is clearly a work in progress offensively.

The 2025 recruit referred to his game as 'mainly paint play,' including catching alley-oops and, most importantly, his highly acclaimed defense. Additionally, he still has two years to bulk up and diversify his skill set.

UNLV, Kansas, and Cal are his top options right now. Here is what he had to say about KU in an interview:

“I’m doing as much research as I can on these schools, and I am just learning about Kansas. I know they are a blue blood, and they have won national championships, and are a top team now," Staton told On3. "But I am still learning. They like how hard I play and how much I hustle. They talk a lot about my shot-blocking and say that even if I’m not scoring on the offensive end, that I’m still affecting the game with my defense.”

Competing with schools out West could be challenging — Gonzaga has been another school mentioned in the mix — but he seems pretty interested in KU and what the program has to offer.

Staton could be an under-the-radar get for Kansas basketball's 2025 recruiting class, which is currently without a commitment. If schools continue to take notice of his game and he receives more offers, it is encouraging to see the Jayhawks at the forefront of his list this early.