Last season, the Kansas Jayhawks were by no means bad at claiming boards.
Overall, they raked in nine offensive rebounds per game, good for No. 172 in the nation, 27.1 defensive rebounds, which measured out to No. 5 in the country, balancing out their total amount to No. 22 in the nation at 39.1. All good numbers, but the underlying data tells you they aren’t as promising as they initially seem.
In the 2025-26 campaign, the Jayhawks excelled at getting their guards to crash. This has become an increasingly common theme over the years across the nation. Between Tre White, Melvin Council Jr. and Darryn Peterson, KU reeled in about 15.9 rebounds per game, great numbers for a backcourt.
However, between Flory Bidunga and Bryson Tiller, Kansas’ main frontcourt pieces from last season, that duo combined for 15.1. Those aren’t terrible numbers for the pair, but without much bench depth, it could quickly feel like KU was getting outpaced down low.
Yet Bill Self has attacked that weakness in the portal.
Kansas has brought in the needed reinforcements
When looking at potential team leaders for rebounds next season, the options quickly narrow to sophomore center Paul Mbiya, senior power forward Keanu Dawes and senior center Christian Reeves.
Mbiya offers elite height at a towering 7-foot-0. But his freshman season largely saw him come in for a foul-ridden Bidunga, which means his minutes were limited. Mbiya’s two biggest contributions of the season came in the NCAA Tournament against Cal Baptist and St. John’s, where he totaled nine rebounds and 29 minutes split between the two games.
Reeves, meanwhile, joins the team with bounds of experience at Duke, Clemson and the College of Charleston. His last season in the Coastal Athletic Association saw him go for 7.8 rebounds per matchup. Yet with a lingering shoulder injury that he is still working out, no one knows if he will be fully ready by the start of next season, giving Mbiya and Dawes a head start.
Dawes finishes the conversation as the team’s most likely candidate. For one, Dawes won’t be fazed by the hustle and bustle of the Big 12. Last season, Dawes finished with 8.8 rebounds per game for the Utah Utes, which was good for No. 42 in the nation. While Mbiya and Reeves will have to fight with one another for minutes, making it hard for either of the two to lead the pack, Dawes has the power forward spot locked down.
Freshman Davion Adkins could be projected as the team’s backup power forward right now, but it looks hard to see a way in which he carves out meaningful minutes as a freshman.
If there was one darkhorse contender in this competition, it would have to be incoming small forward Tyran Stokes. According to MaxPreps, Stokes went for 13 rebounds per game at Rainier Beach last season. Stokes’ stocky 6-foot-7 stature makes him a great candidate to fly in from either wing and get involved down low.
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